11th Red Bull Nanshan Open – Men’s Division Second Place: Juuso Laivisto
“Most riders perform more difficult tricks on the first jump because after landing, their speed slows down when approaching the second jump, making it hard to rotate more than 900 degrees. But Jeremy managed a 1080,” said Steve, one of the event founders, after the competition. Despite the finals being canceled due to weather, the American rider’s performance in the preliminaries was truly deserving. “Such a trick combination is extremely rare on the international scene, and Jeremy absolutely earned this championship!”
11th Red Bull Nanshan Open – Men’s Division Champion Jeremy Thompson during the competition
11th Red Bull Nanshan Open – Women’s Division Champion Kristiina Nisula
The top 12 male riders from the preliminary round on the 19th began their semifinal battles early on the 20th. Competing in the snow, the riders were significantly affected—not only did the heavy snow reduce their speed, but visibility was also hindered. Finnish rider Ville Eerik Uotila stated beforehand, “The snow on the course today is very soft, which will slow us down and make takeoffs much harder.” Host Eric also noted, “Snowy conditions really test a rider’s experience and speed control.” The first ten riders did not perform up to expectations in terms of both trick quality and execution. When defending champion Juuso, going second to last, landed heavily on his leg at the first big jump, he was rushed to the hospital for emergency treatment.
Soon after, head judge Sandy MacDonald announced a temporary halt to the competition and led other judges and organizing committee members in inspecting the course. Amidst the anxious wait, the head judge declared, “According to the rules, as the weather has made it impossible to continue, we regret to announce the cancellation of the event after deliberation. The final results will be based solely on the preliminary scores from the 19th.” Per TTR regulations, if riders collectively indicate they can no longer continue due to adverse weather, the competition must be terminated. “This is also for the safety of the riders,” Sandy added.
Defending champion Juuso Laivisto during the competition
During the awards ceremony, a rescue vehicle drove a rider toward the podium — blue snow pants, yellow jacket — and someone suddenly shouted, “Juuso’s back!” It turned out that after receiving basic treatment at the mountain clinic, Juuso insisted on coming up to receive his award in person. Walking slowly onstage with crutches and his left leg heavily bandaged, he was quickly surrounded by fellow riders before even steadying himself. “My knee’s fine, but I might have fractured my ankle. I’m heading into Beijing tonight to get a cast and X-rays. We’ll know more after the doctor checks it,” Juuso explained. “Injuries happen all the time — they’re part of snowboarding life, part of my life.”
Juuso Laivisto injured unexpectedly during the first run of the finals
Injured runner-up Juuso Laivisto arrives at the podium with crutches
Aside from the men’s division concluded on the 20th, the women’s division — introduced for the first time this year — also wrapped up on the 19th. Finnish rider Kristiina Nisula became the first female champion of the Red Bull Nanshan Open. Swede Cecilia Larsen took second place, and Chinese rider Zhu Hong, under immense pressure in the third round of the finals, stunned everyone by securing third. At 24, she not only became the first Chinese female rider to earn TTR points, but also the first Chinese rider to stand on the podium of a WST World Snowboard Tour 5-star event.