Freeride World Tour Cancels Stop Four in Fieberbrunn

Featured Image: Courtesy of the Freeride World Tour

The Freeride World Tour has announced the cancellation of the Fieberbrunn, Austria Pro competition. Deteriorating snow conditions led tour organizers to view the proposed venue and surrounding mountains as unfit for professional competition standards.

This marks the second straight cancellation of the 2026 FWT season. While the third stop, the Georgia Pro, was relocated to Austria in hopes of finding a more stable snowpack, it too was inevitably cancelled. With both the third and fourth stops canned, the remaining rankings have been determined by just the first two stops of the season.

That fact has already spurred major debate online, as we are now beyond the season's cut, in which only the top half of riders from each field move on to compete in the final two stops of the year. Instead of having four full stops to prove their merit, riders are now being judged on only the first two competitions of the winter: the Baqueira Beret Pro and the Val Thorens Pro.

In an official press release on March 6, the Tour expounded upon their decision, stating, "This season has been particularly complex, forcing us to adapt more than once. Until last weekend, conditions on the Wildseeloder in Fieberbrunn were promising. However, increased humidity and new snowfall changed the snowpack and triggered an avalanche that affected a large part of the venue. We waited for clear nights that could have allowed the snow to stabilize and transform, but those conditions did not materialize."

The iconic Wildseeloder face; the usual FWT Fieberbrunn competition venue | Photo: Dom Daher, FWT

The release continued, "FWT Commissioners and the Safety Team evaluated the Wildseeloder face and scoped several alternative faces in Fieberbrunn and across the Tirol region. While Fieberbrunn still offered the best available conditions, none of the options assessed met the safety, snow quality, and contestability standards required to stage a Freeride World Tour Pro competition."

While nobody is happy with this outcome, competing in overtly risky conditions is never the right call. Avalanche fatalities have been skyrocketing this season. European Avalanche Warning Services have already reported 124 avalanche-related deaths this winter in the Alps alone. That's over 50 more deaths in the Alps than during all of last winter, and we are barely halfway through the season. And in North America, we've seen tragedy after tragedy rock the ski world, with California recently recording its deadliest avalanche incident ever. The numbers are simply devastating.

During a time like this, the smart decision is never to push limits and try to make up for lost time. Just because one competition was canceled does not mean you force the next. Don't forget that the FWT ultimately loses time and money when comps are thrown out, and it's never something they want to do. They take their safety standards seriously and are clearly willing to put their money where their mouth is when it comes to upholding these ideals and protecting riders when possible.

"Freeride is one of the few professional sports that does not control its arena," the press release aptly added. "We compete on natural mountain faces shaped entirely by the elements, and when conditions do not allow for safe and fair competition, we cannot run the event." This sentiment is exactly what makes freeride so enthralling. It's a reminder of our place in the larger world. We are not running the show; we are just a part of it.

We share the pain of the riders who have worked tirelessly to get to where they are, and who are now being sent home. At the same time, we're excited to watch the best of the best compete in the final two stops... assuming they happen.

Currently, the weather window for Yeti Alaska Haines Pro is March 15 - 22.