Event organizers of SWATCH Freeride World Tour, Freeskiing World Tour and The North Face Masters of Snowboarding announced a merger this week that will combine all three tours under one unified global 5-star championship series. The new six-stop world tour – named the SWATCH FREERIDE WORLD TOUR BY THE NORTH FACE – will include freeride skiing and snowboarding at each stop.
This means that the world’s best freeriders will be competing in the USA/Canada and Europe together, increasing competition between riders and hence the level of riding in general. There will be one true Freeride World Tour champion. On the women’s side, there will be 12 strong skiers battling it out for the overall title. I find competition for the women especially important: it brings us together from all parts of the world, allowing us to push the level of female skiing further and faster due to the fact that it’s incredibly motivating to see each other skiing strong, fluid lines with solid airs.
It makes me very sad that I won’t be one of the female FWT riders after my last competition season full of crashes which cost me a place for the FWT 2013. I’m going to be competing on the Freeride World Qualifier events this coming winter, starting with a 4-star event in Chile now in August, with the aim of re-qualifying for FWT 2014. Still, I tried my best last winter and learnt a great deal about competition in general. The Freeride World Qualifier events will be ideal for me to build up confidence and learn to play the mental game required during competition. They will be important stepping stones for me to achieve my final goal: a successful performance on Freeride World Tour level.
