Monster Energy congratulates its team of freeski and snowboard
athletes on history-making performances on the second day of X
Games Aspen 2023. On Saturday, Monster Energy riders claimed a
total of six medals (two gold, one silver, and three bronze) across
five contest events at Buttermilk Mountain in Aspen Snowmass, Colorado.
ASPEN,
Colo., Jan. 29, 2023 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- The
medal run is unstoppable! Monster Energy congratulates its team of
freeski and snowboard athletes on history-making performances on
the second day of X Games Aspen 2023. On Saturday, Monster Energy
riders claimed a total of six medals (two gold, one silver, and
three bronze) across five contest events at Buttermilk Mountain in
Aspen Snowmass, Colorado.
Monster Energy struck gold on the first event of the day when
25-year-old Colby Stevenson put down
a perfect run to claim the win in Jeep Men's Ski Slopestyle. In a
major upset, 14-year-old rookie Gaon Choi made history as the
youngest competitor to take Snowboard SuperPipe gold and the first
Korean athlete ever to earn a gold medal at X Games.
Here are the highlights for Team Monster Energy on day two of X
Games Aspen 2023:
Jeep Men's Ski Slopestyle: Monster Energy's Colby Stevenson
Clinches the Win, Norway's
Ferdinand Dahl Powers into Third
Place
The first gold medal of the day was a tough battle against
inclement weather in the Jeep Men's Ski Slopestyle final. The
42-minute jam session was overshadowed by poor visibility and
snowfall that slowed down the course more and more as time
progressed.
Rising to the challenge, 25-year-old Colby Stevenson from Park City, Utah, put down a perfect run on his
first attempt to take an early lead. The Team USA skier then dialed up the difficulty on his
second run to finalize his victory. Stevenson's highlights in the
rail section included backside 360 switch up continuing 270 and
rightside 450 pretzel 270. In the jumps, he impressed the judges
with a switch leftside double 1080 safety, switch rightside double
1260 safety, and left double 1620 stalefish for the win.
"Coming out here in bad weather, you just had to give it your
best shot and just go for it out there. It was crazy!" said
Stevenson upon winning Men's Ski Slopestyle gold at X Games Aspen
2023. Speaking on his competitors, he added: "They're the best
people I know in the world. It's an honor to ski with all of
them."
Stevenson won gold in Slopestyle and Big Air in his X Games
debut in 2020. He now owns four X Games medals (three gold, one
bronze). He also earned nine World Cup podiums in slopestyle since
2017 and brought home silver in Big Air at the 2022 Winter
Olympics.
Also showing his grit under tough conditions, 24-year-old
Ferdinand Dahl from Oppegaard,
Norway, briefly bumped Stevenson
from the top spot on his second attempt. Ultimately, he walked away
with the bronze medal and managed to stoke fans with two perfect
runs.
Despite the tough course conditions, Dahl put down a 450 to
forward, rightside flair 450 in the rail section. The Norwegian
also stomped perfect airs such as huge switch rightside bio
alley-oop double cork 1260 safety, left double bio 1080 safety, and
right double bio safety 1440. Dahl now owns three X Games medals
(one silver, two bronze).
Monster Energy Women's Snowboard SuperPipe: Gaon Choi Claims
Historic Gold for South Korea
Entering the Monster Energy Women's Snowboard SuperPipe final as
the youngest competitor at X Games Aspen 2023, Gaon Choi from
Seoul, South Korea, proceeded to
etch her name into action sports history. The 14-year-old rookie,
who trains with snowboard icon Chloe
Kim, faced the world's best in her X Games debut but soared
above the competition like a veteran.
In the jam session judged on overall impression, Choi took the
lead right out the gate with a first run featuring two 720
rotations. When she was bumped from the top spot by American
Maddie Mastro, Choi gradually
increased her trick difficulty, opening her second run with a
switch backside 540 mute and adding back-to-back 900s to regain the
top position.
In her third run, the teenage phenom cemented her victory by
stringing together a switch backside 900 mute, Cab 720 melon,
frontside 900 melon, and backside stalefish 900 on the last wall.
Her fourth and final run was equally flawless and shut down the
competition once and for all.
Taking home the gold medal, Choi made history as the youngest
Women's Snowboard Superpipe gold medalist at age 14 years and two
months. The previous record was held by her mentor, Kim, who was 14
years and eight months when she first won the discipline at X Games
Aspen 2015.
"I am so happy!" said Choi upon winning Monster Energy Women's
Snowboard SuperPipe at X Games Aspen 2023.
Choi also sets the record as the first athlete from South Korea to claim gold at an X Games event.
Before stepping into the pro leagues, Choi won the 2022 World
Junior Snowboarding Championships and was undefeated across four
amateur-level halfpipe events on the 2022 FIS Revolution Tour. The
future has arrived!
Monster Energy Women's Ski SuperPipe: Monster Army Rider Svea
Irving Clinches Bronze
As they say, anything can happen at X Games! For proof, look no
further than Saturday night's Monster Energy Women's Ski SuperPipe
final that saw a Monster Army amateur rider rise all the way to the
podium: On the final run of the session, 20-year-old Svea Irving from Winter Park, Colorado, boosted into bronze
medal position.
Raised in the Monster Army athlete support program, Irving made
her X Games debut at Aspen 2022
and finished in seventh place. This year, she found herself dealing
with difficult weather conditions on the Aspen SuperPipe on
Saturday night, as constant snowfall challenged riders to send
their best runs.
But on her fourth and final run of the final, Irving found her
groove and strung together a perfect routine. Propelled into the
pipe by a 'slingshot' speed boost from her Team USA coaches, Irving started with a huge left
alley-oop flatspin 540 Japan, left 900 safety, left alley-oop 360
safety, switch left 360 Weddle grab, right 540 safety, and left 540
safety for third place in a stacked field.
Bronze marks Irving's first X Games medal. Irving has been part
of Team USA Freeski since 2018.
Her brother, Birk Irving, is a decorated freeskier, and Svea grew
up riding moguls before switching to halfpipe at age 10.
Pacifico Women's Snowboard Big Air: Zoi Sadowski-Synnott Lands
Never-Been-Done Switch 1260, Claims Silver Medal
Saturday night in Aspen kicked
into high gear with the Pacifico Women's Snowboard Big Air final.
While the day's constant snowfall posed put a damper on halfpipe
and slopestyle events, the 70-foot Big Air jump was running
smoothly. With overall trick difficulty running at an all-time
high, the rider to watch was defending Big Air gold medalist
Zoi Sadowski-Synnott, who faced the
heaviest field the discipline had ever seen.
As the session progressed, Sadowski-Synnott laid a solid
foundation for a winning score by posting a switch backside 900
mute for 27 points. Next, she had a special trick up her sleeve
that no woman had ever landed in competition. And she brought it
for the Aspen crowd: On her second
attempt, Sadowski-Synnott landed a perfect switch backside 1260 to
engrave the trick into X Games history – and earn a score of 44
points!
Supplementing her score, she unleashed a backside 1260 melon
grab for 42 points, bringing her total score to 86.00 points. When
all was said and done, Sadowski-Synnott earned a strong silver
medal finish behind Japan's Reira
Iwabuchi, a single point ahead in first place with 87.00 points.
Talk about a close call…
Sadowski-Synnott now owns nine X Games medals (five gold, three
silver, and one bronze). In 2022, she earned Slopestyle gold and
Big Air silver at the Beijing Olympics and was celebrated as
New Zealand's first Winter
Olympics gold medalist.
Pacifico Men's Snowboard Big Air: Su Yiming Claims Bronze as
Historic First for China
The last event of Saturday night, Pacifico Men's Snowboard Big
Air ended day two of X Games Aspen 2023 on a high note. In a
showcase of next-level progression, the eight finalists gave the
crowd a celebratory air show. The Big Air session was the time to
shine for 18-year-old Chinese rookie Su
Yiming from Jilin City, who
missed X Games Aspen 2022 because of Covid-19 lockdown.
Yiming made up for lost time in the Big Air session over the
70-foot gap jump. Focused on sending only his A-game tricks over
the massive booter, Yiming spent his attempts blasting a frontside
1800 frontside grab, ultimately landing the five rotations for
39.00 points while the session escalated, and riders raised the bar
to new heights.
Instead of playing it safe, Yiming used his remaining attempts
in the final to put everything on the line for a single trick that
could catapult him to the podium. And it worked: On the final try,
Yiming made history by putting down a clean backside quad cork 1980
Indy and clinched the bronze medal with a final score of 87.00
points.
In his rookie debut at X Games, Yiming became the first male
athlete representing China to
claim a medal. At the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, Yiming claimed
the gold medal in Snowboard Big Air and the silver medal in
Snowboard Slopestyle. He also took first place in Big Air at FIS
World Cup Steamboat in December
2021.
Stay tuned for more X Games Aspen 2023! For the first time this
year, all events will stream live for free on the official X Games
YouTube channel and Twitch.
Visit http://www.monsterenergy.com for exclusive updates from X
Games Aspen 2023, including photos, videos, and contest results as
they happen. Follow Monster Energy on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram,
Twitter and TikTok for exclusive behind-the-scenes looks at
Buttermilk Mountain.
###
About Monster Energy
Based in Corona, California,
Monster Energy is the leading marketer 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.
Media Contact
Kimberly Paige Dresser, Indie
Agency, Inc., (949) 300-5546, kim.dresser@indiepragency.com
SOURCE Monster Energy