Halfpipe stars head to Copper as U.S. skiers step up efforts for Olympic qualification
Two-time Olympic halfpipe champion and Beijing 2022 Games silver medalist David Wise arrives at Copper hoping to improve on his 12th place finish at Secret Garden on December 13. Wise finished fifth at Copper last year after winning the event in 2014 and 2017. Wise was also the third skier alongside runner-up Ferreira and winner Goepper on the Secret Garden podium in 2024, the first of two U.S. podiums last season in the World Cup.
Hunter Hess was the only American skier to finish on the podium at Secret Garden last week with third place, followed by Birk Irving in fourth, Matthew Labaugh in fifth and Nick Geiser in sixth. Labaugh was the top qualifier heading into the final, and last season the 21-year-old finished third in Aspen, giving the United States its second podium of the season alongside Ferreira in first place and Goepper in second. Labaugh’s result in Aspen marked his first World Cup podium in 22 starts since his 2021 tour debut.
Secret Garden winner Finley Melville Ives and fellow New Zealander and Secret Garden finalist Luke Harrold will not compete in Copper. The main challengers for the American delegation in the Copper event are Canadians Andrew Longino and Dylan Marineau, who finished seventh and 15th respectively at Secret Garden. Fellow Canadian and 2023 world champion Brendan Mackay is not competing at the Copper after the 28-year-old finished last in the 14-man final at Secret Garden.
On the women’s side, Zoe Atkin (GBR), co-winner of last season’s Halfpipe Crystal Globe, leads the field of 25 women in copper. The 22-year-old British skier arrives at Copper strengthened by her second place at Secret Garden behind two-time Olympic champion Eileen Gu, who will not compete in the Toyota United States Grand Prix this week. Fellow Chinese skier Li Fanghui shared the 2024/25 Halfpipe Globe with Atkin, but started the new season with ninth place at Secret Garden. His teammate Zhang Kexin finished fifth at Secret Garden after winning the 2018 and 2017 editions.
