Wanaka skier wins in Austria

Photo supplied
Photo supplied
Freeskier Sam Lee (Wanaka) has won a Freeride World Qualifier Tour event in Austria, adding to a string of top results and solidifying this season as his most successful.Sam, who this year made the cut to compete on the Freeride World Tour (FWT) as one of the world’s top 25 male freeride ski athletes, was using the Open Faces Silvretta Montafon 3* competition as a warm-up ahead of next week’s FWT stop in Fieberbrunn, Austria.

“Montafon was fun, it was cool to do a comp with a little less pressure than the FWT,” Sam said. “Originally I just wanted to compete for the fun of it, plus it’s great practice with a week to go to the next FWT stop.

“I’m really happy with the run as the main focus was the cliffs,” he said. Judging is based on overall impression which takes into account the athlete’s line, fluidity, control, technique, air and style.

New Zealand’s Craig Murray also posted a strong result, finishing in seventh place. Murray was the 2016 Junior Freeride Tour Champion and this season has achieved two podium finishes with a win at the Freeride World Qualifier 4* event in Hochfugen, Austria in January and second place at the French Freeride Qualifiers in les Arcs earlier this month.

Add a Comment