ASPEN, Colo., Jan. 25, 2020 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Way to
start the world's biggest snow sports spectacle! Monster Energy
congratulates its team of freeski and snowboard athletes on a
strong performance on day one of X Games Aspen 2020. Monster Energy
riders claimed podium spots in all three events contested on
Thursday night at Buttermilk Mountain in Aspen, Colorado.
In the first-ever Ski Knuckle Huck at a Winter X Games,
22-year-old Colby Stevenson from
Park City, Utah, took home the
gold medal in his X Games debut. Next, the spectacular Monster
Energy Men's Snowboard SuperPipe final ended with Yuto Totsuka from
Yokohama, Japan, claiming his
second silver medal in the event. And capping off an amazing first
day at X Games Aspen 2020, 15-year-old Kokomo Murase from Japan rose finished in second place in the
Pacifico Women's Snowboard Big Air.
The 19th consecutive X Games in the heart of the Rocky Mountains
is here to stoke fans with premium action sports and musical
performances in a festival atmosphere from Thursday to Sunday.
Presented by Monster Energy as the long-time energy drink partner,
X Games Aspen 2020 will award 59 medals in 21 disciplines over the
course of four days. Televised live to global audiences, the event
features 166 athletes from 21 countries as well as music
performances by acclaimed urban and electronic artists.
With energy levels riding high on day one of X Games Aspen 2020,
here's how the action unfolded across ski and snowboard
disciplines:
Ski Knuckle Huck: Colby Stevenson Takes
Gold in X Games Debut Monster Energy Teammates Henrik
Harlaut and Quinn Wolferman Take Second and Third For a Full
Sweep
Kicking off Thursday night's competitions at X Games Aspen, the
brand-new Ski Knuckle Huck event showcased creative freestyle moves
off the Big Air ramp's roll-over, also called the 'knuckle' where
Monster Energy's Colby Stevenson Took Gold and Henrik Harlaut and
Quinn Wolferman took second and
third in what would have been a full podium medal sweep except
Knuckle Huck only awards one gold medal. Contested as a 20-minute
jam session, the event attracted a diverse field of riders
including Big Air experts next to park skiers and urban terrain
specialists.
Monster Energy's Henrik Harlaut from Sweden came into the event as a crowd
favorite, known for his stylish and spontaneous approach to
freestyle skiing. The five-time Big Air gold medalist started with
a spectacular trick creation; a nose press into a switch
frontflip/540, which he dubbed the 'Griselda Flip'.
But Harlaut suddenly faced heat from his Monster Energy
teammate, 22-year-old Colby
Stevenson from Park City,
Utah, who clinched the lead with a technical left 540 into a
switch butter 720 Japan out in his first start at an X Games.
Harlaut fired back with switch left 180 to nose butter cork
1080, but Stevenson retained the upper hand with a switch left 360
into 180 into tail butter 900 stalefish.
On the last attempt of the session, Harlaut had one more chance
to claim the win and make history by claiming what would have been
his 12th medal at X Games, the most ski medals in history. Digging
deep into his bag of tricks, Harlaut pulled out a switch left 180
to nose butter double cork 1080 – potentially the trick of the
night – but lost the handle on the landing. This sealed the victory
for Colby Stevenson in the
winner-takes-all event and he received the brass knuckle gold chain
as the official Ski Knuckle Huck winner in front of the high-energy
crowd on Buttermilk Mountain.
"This feels unreal! I have been dreaming of this since I was a
kid. To be out here with all of my best friends sending it over the
knuckle is too good to be true," said Colby
Stevenson upon winning gold in his X Games debut at
Aspen 2020 on Thursday night. Stay
tuned when the US Ski Team member, who one week ago finished third
in Slopestyle at the Ski Slopestyle World Cup in Seiser Alm,
Italy, returns in Men's Ski Big
Air and Men's Ski Slopestyle this weekend.
Men's Snowboard SuperPipe: Monster Energy's Yuto Totsuka Battles
into Second Place
Keeping the snow action going, the capacity crowd in
Aspen witnessed the highly
contested Monster Energy Men's Snowboard SuperPipe final. Eight of
the world's best freestyle snowboarders battled it out in the
600-foot long halfpipe with its 22-foot high walls. As a major
change this year, riders were no longer scored on their best run of
the final, but on overall impressions in a new 35-minute jam
session format.
The biggest rivalry of the night, however, was not new. Monster
Energy's Yuto Totsuka from Yokohama,
Japan, again went head-to-head against Australia's Scotty
James. The two riders had just finished a close showdown at
the 2020 Laax Open in Switzerland
with James taking the win, Totsuka coming in second.
Rising to the challenge as the youngest rider in tonight's
final, Totsuka took an early lead with a perfect run featuring
frontside double cork 1260 mute, backside 900 mute, frontside 1080,
Cab 1080 mute, and frontside 1080 tail grab. But straight out the
gate, Scotty James reclaimed the top
spot.
Staying close on the Australian's heels, Yuto Totsuka cranked up
the level of trick difficulty by opening his run with a high-flying
frontside double cork 1440 mute followed by a Cab 1080 nose/tail
grab combo. As Scotty James kept
rifling off difficult tricks in the final, Totsuka inched closer by
adding technical bangers like Cab 1260 double grab and switch
backside 1080 to his flawless runs with airs topping out at 15'9"
in the air. But ultimately, James maintained his winning streak, as
Yuto Totsuka walked away with a strong silver-medal finish.
Thursday night's second-place podium marks Yuto Totsuka's second
X Games silver after his successful X Games debut in Aspen last year. Despite his young age, the
18-year-old is a now certified podium threat: Totsuka took home
snowboard halfpipe wins at the FIS Snowboard World Cups in Calgary
and Mammoth Mountain in Spring 2019 and third place at the 2019
Burton U.S. Open Snowboarding Championships. After the recent 2020
Laax Open, the reigning Japanese national halfpipe champion now
ranks second on the FIS Snowboard Halfpipe World Cup
leaderboards.
Women's Snowboard Big Air: Monster Energy's Kokomo Murase Takes
Home X Games Silver
Rounding out a big first day at X Games Aspen 2020, the Pacifico
Women's Snowboard Big Air final saw eight of the world's best
freestyle snowboarders sending their most technical aerials over
the massive 70-foot long snow jump. With riders hailing from
Japan, Canada, Austria, New
Zealand, and the United
States, Big Air also moved to a 35-minute jam format scored
on overall impression for the first time this year.
As the youngest snowboard competitor at this edition of X Games
Aspen, 15-year-old Kokomo Murase
came into the new jam format with the right mixture of strategy and
diverse tricks. As her opening trick, the rookie pro popped a
backside 900 tailgrab over the gap, followed by a technical
backside 1080 mute on her next attempt. Showing her versatile trick
repertoire, Murase landed a double underflip before putting down a
perfect backside double cork 1260 mute, a trick she landed as the
first girl ever in a competition at X Games Norway 2018.
For her last trick, Kokomo Murase
chose a frontside double cork 1080 to earn a strong silver-medal
finish, her third X Games Big Air medal (1 gold, 2 silver) in just
as many starts. Murase finished closely behind fellow Japanese
snowboarder Miyabi Onitsuka taking
the win and ahead of Reira Iwabuchi in third for the first
all-Japanese podium in Winter X Games history. Right before X Games
Aspen 2020, Kokomo Murase claimed
second place at the recent Big Air Atlanta event and counts among
the upcoming riders to watch on the international snowboard big air
circuit.
Also stoking the crowd in Aspen
tonight, 18-year-old Zoi
Sadowski-Synnott from Wanaka, New
Zealand, brought her A-game to the big jump: backside 900
mute, switch backside 900 double cork, and a fast-spinning
frontside 900 brought the newcomer within inches of a podium spot
and earned her a fourth-place finish.
As the latest addition to the Monster Energy snowboarding team,
Sadowski-Synnott already took Slopestyle gold and Big Air silver at
X Games Aspen 2019. She also claimed Big Air bronze at the 2018
Winter Olympics, the first Winter Olympics medal for New Zealand since 1992. Watch out for the
rookie as she returns alongside Kokomo
Murase and teammate Jamie
Anderson in Women's Snowboard Slopestyle on Saturday.
Download Ski Knuckle Huck Photos for Editorial Use
Download Men's Snowboard SuperPipe Photos for Editorial Use
Download Women's Snowboard Big Air Photos for Editorial Use
Stay tuned as ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNEWS and ABC will televise a
combined 15.5 hours of live X Games Aspen competition, which will
also be accessible via the ESPN App and WatchABC to viewers who
receive their video subscription from an affiliated provider. In
addition, all 15.5 hours of live content, plus exclusive
competitions, musical performances and X Games Extra shows will be
streamed on the @XGames YouTube, Facebook and Twitter pages.
Also visit http://www.monsterenergy.com for exclusive updates
from X Games Aspen 2020 including photos, videos, and contest
results as they happen. Follow Monster Energy on Facebook,
Instagram, Twitter for exclusive behind-the-scenes looks in
Aspen 2020.
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About Monster Energy
Based in Corona, California,
Monster Energy is the leading marketer and distributor of energy
drinks and alternative beverages. Refusing to acknowledge the
traditional, Monster Energy supports the scene and sport. Whether
motocross, off-road, NASCAR, MMA, BMX, surf, snowboard, ski,
skateboard, or the rock and roll lifestyle, Monster Energy is a
brand that believes in authenticity and the core of what its
sports, athletes and musicians represent. More than a drink, it's
the way of life lived by athletes, sports, bands, believers and
fans. See more about Monster Energy including all of its drinks at
http://www.monsterenergy.com
SOURCE Monster Energy