The 2011 Burton US Open Snowboarding Championships halfpipe semi-finals are a wrap
The men’s and women’s halfpipe semi-finals of the 2011 Burton US Open Snowboarding Championships have wrapped up today, March 10, at the Stratton Mountain Resort in Vermont, USA. Ten men and six women were able to secure a place in the final which will be
held on Saturday, March 12th.
In the women field, twenty-one riders put up a determined fight in the semi-finals to earn one of the six spots in final. As expected, America’s halfpipe sensation and Vermont’s local, Kelly Clark, remained the most prominent rider of the day with her exceptional
skills and outstanding run. She is considered the favourite to win the contest because of her halfpipe prowess and recent form. She also requires a decent result in the contest to find a place in the the Top 3 women riders for the current Swatch Ticket to
Ride (TTR) Tour season.
Another Vermont local, Hannah Teter, also managed to pull off an impressive run to qualify for the finals in second place comfortably. The last four slots in the final were secured by Japan’s Soko Yamaoka, New Zealand’s Rebecca Sinclair, Norwegian Kiersti
Buaas, and America’s Gretchen Bleiler.
The men’s semi-final was a little more crowded, with 39 extremely talented riders competing against each other for the 10 available spots in finals. The energetic and determined performances by all the competitors made it clear just how desperate they were
to make it to the finals. In the end, Switzerland’s Iouri Podladtchikov managed to outshine his rivals and was deemed as the most impressive by the judges. He qualified for finals in first place after earning a massive score of 98.00. Indeed he will be striking
fear into the hearts of his competitors on the final day after such an amazing semi-final performance.
Last year’s US Open champion, Kazuhiro Kokubo from Japan, qualified for the finals in second place with a score of 96.67. His level of riding and the exhibited skills made it clear why he had won the title last year. He is a very strong contender for this
year’s title as well and definitely someone others need to look out for in the finals.
The other riders who qualified for the men’s halfpipe finals include Ryo Anono, Kohei and Eiju Hirano, all from Japan. Finland’s Markus Malin, Switzerland’s Jan Scherrer also managed to grab the final’s spot. The three American’s qualifying for the final
included the exciting Louie Vito along with Zack Black and Matt Ladley.
The level of riding is expected to be sky high in the halfpipe final, which is going to be held on March 12th. The men and women TTR Tour World Champions for the 2010/2011 season will be crowned after the conclusion of the contest, and will mark
the end of the current season.
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