From January 11 to 15, 2022, they will once again be making their way to Laax: the world's best freestyle snowboarders. They will be performing their tricks in the park and pipe, thrilling fans and judges alike. The new year will begin with a bang: with LAAX OPEN. Europe's most prestigious snowboard contest, an important part of the FIS Snowboard World Cup Tour. Organized by and held in Laax in Graubünden, which has been voted "World's Best Freestyle Resort" by the jury and audience multiple times.
After the North American stops in 2021/2022, the World Cup circuit moves directly to Switzerland in the second week of January for the final Olympic countdown. The LAAX OPEN is the last World Cup before the Winter Olympics. A total of CHF 140,000 in prize money is up for grabs, divided equally between women and men, slopestyle and halfpipe. Who will take the crown at Crap Sogn Gion at 2,252 meters above sea level? That will be decided on Saturday, January 15, 2022. You can experience the high-quality sporting finals live on site with an impressive mountain backdrop or via livestream on www.laax.com/open and in the semi-live edition on Red Bull TV.
Playground for freestylers
Constantly redesigned by the innovative Snowpark LAAX crew, the slopestyle course demands creativity as well as clean technique from the riders. Each performance is unique. It looks so easy when they fly through the air or glide over the rail – especially the finalists. The favorites among the women are Annika Morgan (GER), Katie Ormerod (GB), and Anna Gasser (AUT). Among the men, the Canadians and Scandinavians are the favorites, while the Swiss team continues to impress year after year, most recently with Moritz Boll, who finished among the world's best in Laax in 2021.
Spotlight on 200-meter halfpipe experience
In the women's competition, 2020 LAAX OPEN winner Queralt Castellet (SPA) stands out from the Asian contingent: the ladies from Japan swept the podium in Laax in 2021. China is also making its mark in the Olympic winter with Cai Xuetong and Jiayu Liu. Japan is currently also setting the tone in the men's competition, especially with last year's LAAX OPEN winner Yuto Totsuka and Ruka Hirano. Last but not least: the best that host country Switzerland has to offer: Jan Scherrer, who has recently finished on the podium three times at major international events and is in good shape to do so again at the home World Cup in Laax.
Information, program, and more at www.laax.com/open
The top international event will be held in accordance with a COVID-19 protection concept that covers athletes, everyone involved in the event, employees, and guests, and was developed in coordination with the Swiss-Ski and FIS associations.
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