Gu, Harrold Win Big as The Snow League Caps Off Insane Season One

All Images: Dean Blotto, Courtesy of The Snow League

We've watched the first full season of The Snow League come and go, with the recent competition in LAAX, Switzerland, completing the inaugural journey, and you'd be hard-pressed to find a fan or rider who holds any hint of disappointment.

With skiers and boarders throwing down side by side, we saw more money go into the hands of halfpipe riders in a single winter than ever before. At least more than we've seen in recent memory. And the exposure for the sport cannot go unrecognized. Mainstream media comes with its perils, but to see some of our favorite two-plankers under the lights on NBC was fantastic, and is exactly the kind of attention needed to keep halfpipe freeskiing alive and growing.

But more on that later. For now, let's dive into the action from Switzerland. The weather could not have been more ideal in LAAX as the fourth stop of TSL Season One commenced on March 19. The men's and women's brackets were formed as competitors paired into head-to-head matchups based on seeding from previous events, as is the usual format for TSL.

The quarterfinals brackets were:

Women's Quarterfinals Bracket

(1) Eileen Gu vs. (8) Dillan Glennie

(4) Rachael Karker vs. (5) Zoe Atkin

(3) Amy Fraser vs. (6) Hanna Faulhaber

(2) Svea Irving vs. (7) Mischa Thomas

Men's Quarterfinals Bracket

(1) Brendan Mackay vs. (8) Andrew Longino

(4) Birk Irving vs. (5) Hunter Hess

(3) Gus Kenworthy vs. (6) David Wise

(2) Luke Harrold vs. (7) Matt Labaugh

With the snowboard fields being massive, the 16 skiers had to do battle in just one day. The Snow League competition format dictates matchups to be best two out of three runs, meaning these skiers would need to rip nine laps in the pipe before taking the crown. That's a lot of riding, and the planning, preparation, and deep bag of tricks required cannot be overstated.

Quarterfinals saw Eileen Gu and Zoe Atkin advance, as well as Amy Fraser and Mischa Thomas, with Thomas pulling off the big upset over Svea Irving. In the men's field, Brendan Mackay continued his hot streak and went on to face Hunter Hess, who ousted Birk Irving thanks to a secret competitive edge. David Wise pulled off the upset on Gus Kenworthy and advanced to face young Luke Harrold in the semis under the lights.

A historic night under the stars in LAAX with the biggest cash purse in freeski history up for grabs

Skier: (left to right) Luke Harrold, Zoe Atkin, Hunter Hess, Eileen Gu

In the women's field, Gu and Atkin faced off in perhaps the most highly contested of all semifinal games, with both women laying down incredible runs. Gu was able to best Atkin by five points and then by just one point, giving her the two to zero lead as she moved on to the finals. Fraser similarly bested Thomas by a narrow margin in both runs and punched her ticket to finals.

The finals were then set between Gu and Fraser. In the end, the bright lights got the best of Fraser. Her first run was extremely solid, as she opted for a right 900 lead tindy, as well as a left 900 lead toxic, but ultimately couldn't cap her grabs on those larger rotations. She earned a commendable 81.50. Gu topped her by 10 points, with a capped right 720 lead tail, switch left 720 japan and two flat spins, including a right alley oop flat 540 critical.

Fraser went back up hungry, but just couldn't capitalize as she caught the deck slightly on her second hit of run two after Gu dropped first and put down a solid lap. Sweeping Fraser, Gu became both the LAAX event winner and a global TSL Season One champ with 200 season points, as she also won Event Two in China. The third-place matchup was neck-and-neck as Atkin and Thomas traded blows, each claiming victory in a run. The third lap went Atkin's way, though, as she opened up with a huge left 540 mute and flawless right 720 lead safety.

In the men's field, the veteran Wise was unable to get a run out from under the 17-year-old Harrold, who ousted him 2-0 and cruised to the finals. His opponent would be none other than Brendan Mackay, who took the win at TSL Event Two in China. Mackay beat Hess after coming back from losing the first run in the two-out-of-three series. His second run was mint, with both a right double cork 1260 safety and left double cork 1260 blunt.

Mackay and Harrold gave us the finals we'd been dreaming of, with the overall championship on the line. Harrold took the first run by just two points, 83.2 to 81.7, but stumbled on run two, landing deep in the gut of the pipe after he grabbed mute so aggressively that his right ski popped off mid-air. He walked away uninjured, thankfully, but left the door open for Mackay to win run two as he boosted over 18 feet out of the pipe. Using every bit of strength left, the two went back up for one more. Harrold's switch right alley oop double cork 900 critical had the judges in shambles, and Mackay just couldn't make it happen, killing his speed mid-run to avoid flying out of the pipe after landing high.

The third-place matchup was between Hunter Hess and David Wise. These two also took their matchup to all three games, but in the end, Hess outlasted the seasoned competitor Wise, who can still hang his hat on finishing in fourth after a competitive career that's lasted over 15 years.

Women's and men's freeski podiums in LAAX

With the first full season of TSL in the bag, we can confidently say this event is good for halfpipe skiing. Hundreds of thousands of dollars went into skier's pockets, with over half a million being earned in LAAX. There are still many aspects of skiing, such as accessibility and affordability, that remain in the air, but money and exposure like this help not only to reward those who put in the time and effort but to incentivize the next generation.

Massive congrats to Harrold and Gu for claiming the Event Four and Overall Champion titles, and thank you to TSL for putting on such an event! We're already stoked for more riding next competition season... perhaps with skiing at all four stops? We'll have to wait and see.