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GSA Series Wildcards for the World Snowboard Tour Series

The Global Snowboarder Alliance (GSA) has announced the Series Wildcards for the World Snowboard Tour Pro Series for both men and women in Slopestyle and Halfpipe, chosen by a pre-selected Series Wildcard Selection Committee. The Series Wildcards enable riders who were not yet qualified for the World Snowboard Tour Pro Series, through the respective World Snowboarding Points List (WSPL) to compete at the Elite level Pro Series events for the 2014/2015 season.

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Chas Guldemond and the GSA: “We would like to take a moment and thank everyone for their time and energy to this process. With a special thanks to the riders who took the time to apply, in showing support for our Series Wildcard initiative and the 2015 WST Pro Series. This Pro Series Tour that has been established in conjunction with TTR/WST and it’s the first of its kind. I am proud as a rider and a participant that we have been able to get this far for the first year. We all have very high hopes that this year will set the groundwork for many years of healthy competitive snowboarding to come.”

Three series wildcards per discipline, per gender are awarded to the following riders:

Slopestyle Men          Halfpipe Men            Slopestyle Women     Halfpipe Women

Roope Tonteri                    Nate Johnstone                Anna Gasser                          Torah Bright
Eric Beauchemin               Janne Korpi                        Spencer O’Brien                  Hikaru Oe
Ryan Stassel                        Chase Josey                        Kjersti Buaas                        Holly Crawford

Congratuations to all Series Wildcard riders, from us at World Snowboard Tour, we wish you all the best for your season and we look forward to seeing you at Pro Series!

About the selection committee
The Series Wildcard Selection Committee is an impartial panel consisting of five members, commissioned by appointed members of the current GSA Board of Representatives and approved by the World Snowboard Tour:

Sandy McDonald – TTR Judge Director & Selection Committee Chairman
Susie Floros – Editor in Chief of Snowboarder Mag
Tom Kingsnorth – Founder of Pyramid Mag
Henry Jackson – Event Commentator
“Ishi“ Shigeru Ishihara – WSF Board Member, nominated by Snowboard Japan

About the Global Snowboarders Alliance
The Global Snowboarders Alliance (GSA) is the rider established organisation put in place by freestyle snowboarding’s elite athletes who are currently competing on the global freestyle snowboarding event tours. Voted in by top 100 on the Worlds Snowboarding Points List, the GSA Board of Representatives consists of current top 10 Riders across the Slopestyle, Big Air & Halfpipe formats.

The GSA Board of Representatives are:
Men’s Slopestyle – Chas Guldemond USA, Ståle Sandbech NOR, Torstein Horgmo NOR
Women’s Slopestyle –  Kjersti Buaas NOR,  Spencer O’Brien CAN, Christy Prior NZ
Men’s Pipe – Benji Farrow USA, Taylor Gold USA, Louie Vito USA
Women’s Pipe –  Kelly Clark USA,  Arielle Gold USA

For more information on the Global Snowboarders Alliance (GSA) visit www.globalsnowboardersalliance.com

For more information on the World Snowboard Tour and the new Pro Series visit www.worldsnowboardtour.com

Media Contact World Snowboard Tour
Meike Vetter
meike@ttrprosnowboarding.com
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World Snowboard Tour Calendar 2014/15

TTR World Snowboard Tour

More than 250 events worldwide / New four-level World Snowboard Tour system with Regional, National, International and Elite level / New World Snowboard Tour Pro Series / More consistency and transparency.

TTR World Snowboard Tour

Based on four event categories, Elite, International, National and Regional, the new tour structure provides more transparency and a clear career path, allowing riders to climb the ranks from Rookie through to Elite level events, under one unified system. The World Snowboard Tour (WST) events on the Elite level form the brand new World Snowboard Tour Pro Series, in which only the best riders from around the world will compete for the Pro Series Champion titles in Slopestyle (m/f) and Halfpipe (m/f). The riders field of Pro Series events will be composed of Qualified Riders, determined by the World Snowboarding Points Lists (WSPL) in the respective discipline, Series Wildcards, determined by a committee selected by the Global Snowboarders Alliance (GSA), and Event Wildcards, allocated by the event organizer on a per event basis. This makes for a more consistent starter field than in the past, allowing more tension and transparency for the Tour´s global audience. With the new Tour structure and the launch of World Snowboard Tour Pro Series, competition snowboarding is another step closer to a rider-friendly and transparent Tour for all participants.

Regretfully the organizer of Winter X-Games Aspen has decided to part ways with the World Snowboard Tour this season. Furthermore, Air+Style has not yet confirmed its membership in this year´s Tour. This means that Air+Style in Beijing, China, this weekend December 5th – 6th 2014, will not be part of the World Snowboard Tour and the results will not count for the World Snowboard Tour Pro Series ranking. But the individual results will count for the WSPL World Snowboarding Points List. Should Air+Style come to a positive conclusion, which would very much be welcomed by TTR, the Air & Style Innsbruck and the Air & Style L.A. will be acknowledged as part of the World Snowboard Tour Pro Series.

Reto Lamm, President of TTR Pro Snowboarding: “With the new and improved tour concept of the World Snowboard Tour we are pushing further towards a unified environment in competitive snowboarding. Even if we failed in hitting the jackpot, as we did not reach an agreement on commercialization between the top events and IMG, we implemented much of the plan we had presented at the TTR General Assembly in Barcelona. The four levels of events make the tour more transparent and understandable for media, public and riders: The Regional level consists of local events with local impact, National level events will be national event series, national championships and other events in one country, high-profile international events will be found in the International level of the tour, who prepare the riders for the next and final stage. The highest Elite level forms the World Snowboard Tour Pro Series, which combines the best riders in the world as well as the best events worldwide, including significant prize money, TV and global media coverage, coupled with first-rate, progressive venues. The situation for the sport would of course be better, if Air+Style as well as X-Games and Dew Tour decided to join the Tour. This would do the sport, the riders and themselves a great service.”

World Snowboard Tour Pro Series to kick off at Burton European Open presented by MINI in Laax, Switzerland
The first official stop of the World Snowboard Tour Pro Series will be one of the highest profile events of the year, the infamous Burton European Open presented by MINI in Laax, Switzerland. From January 29th – February 1st 2015, riders, industry leaders and spectators will gather at the all new Superpipe and an innovative Slopestyle course on Crap Sogn Gion.

Immediately following BEO, it’s off to the United States to the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association´s Grand Prix at Mammoth Mountain, US (February 2nd – 7th 2015), the Slopestyle and Halfpipe event at the esteemed Unbound Park. The final stage of the World Snowboard Tour Pro Series 2014/15 will be held at the Burton US Open presented by MINI in Vail, US from March 2nd – 7th 2015, where this season’s Halfpipe and Slopestyle Pro Series Champions will be crowned.

All World Snowboard Tour Pro Series events at a glance:

Burton European Open by MINI, Laax, Switzerland – 29. January – 1. February 2015 HP/SS

Grand Prix, Mammoth, US – 2. – 7. February 2015 HP/SS

Burton US Open by MINI, VAil, US – 2. March – 7. March 2015 HP/SS

New additions on the International level
The International level of events on the World Snowboard Tour is showcasing a number of well-known regulars as well as some new entrants. The RedBull Nanshan Open in Beijing, China from January 13th – 19th 2015, Poney Session in St. Lary Soulan, France from March 4th – 8th 2015 and Total Fight in Grandvalira, Andorra from March 26th – 28th 2015 will all be part of the new International event level among other established contests. New additions to this year´s calendar are the Russian Grand Prix in Moscow, Russia from January 8th – 11th 2015 as well as the Ale Invite by Kevin & Tor near Gothenburg, Sweden on February 28th 2015, both featuring exciting Big Air set-ups. With the Grand Prix at Copper, US from December 1st – 6th 2014 and the Grand Prix at Park City, US from February 23rd – March 1st 2015, two full blown Slopestyle and Halfpipe events will provide North American riders ample opportunity to qualify for the 2016 Pro Series.

National and Regional level events stand strong
TTR has also renewed it’s partnership with the World Snowboarding Federation (WSF) for another three years. WSF and its member nations are responsible for managing and overseeing the National and Regional level events on the Tour, supporting the grassroots events and amateur contest riders. Entry level contest series like the World Rookie Tour, QParks Tour, Chill and Destroy Tour, and US Revolution Tour confirmed at National and Regional levels, support the growth and development of the sport and competition snowboarding, by encouraging rider participation and establishing a viable rider career pathway. Together, the TTR and the WSF will work to guarantee a high standard of riding, course safety and course creativity and event calibre throughout all levels of the tour.

All upcoming events of the WST 2014/15 can be found here: www.worldsnowboardtour.com/events

About TTR Pro Snowboarding and the World Snowboard Tour
TTR Pro Snowboarding strives to promote snowboarding competition and represents the interests of the sport’s stakeholders. A new breed of sport’s governing body, TTR represents a professional network of events, athletes, national sport associations and industry partners. Since its initiation in 2002, TTR has become a key player in snowboarding and an important voice for the sport, it’s athletes and it’s stakeholders. Built upon the sport’s core values and unique culture, the TTR provides the structural foundation for the sport from Rookie to Elite level through a credible and internationally accepted event categorization system. A Non-Profit organization, TTR owns and operates the World Snowboard Tour, the Global Ranking System and the World Championships of Snowboarding. The World Snowboard Tour is the home to over 250 events per year, and through it’s global competition standards – from formats and sanctioning, to judging and safety – and by publishing the widely respected World Snowboarding Points List (WSPL), TTR brings transparency to the sport, offering a fair, un-biased, global ranking platform in the freestyle disciplines of Halfpipe, Slopestyle and Big Air. It’s four-tiered tour system offers unique rookie-to-pro opportunities for upcoming riders, where the Elite level events on the WST Pro Series are the ultimate pinnacle of snowboarding.

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WSF announces 
National Qualification Criteria to Yabuli 2016 


TTR Pro Snowboarding and the World Snowboard Federation hereby officially announce the qualification criteria for the 2016 World Championships of Snowboarding set to take place in March 2016 in Yabuli, China.

The World Championships of Snowboarding will be held every four years and will host Halfpipe, Slopestyle and Big Air competitions to crown male and female world champions in each discipline. Big Air is not confirmed yet for Yabuli but remains under discussion. Athletes will be able to qualify for the World Championships of Snowboarding through the WSPL Quota and the WSF National Quota. Below is a complete breakdown of how riders will be able to qualify for the 2016 World Championships of Snowboarding beginning with competitor field size, moving on to minimum requirements for all riders and specific criteria, which will guarantee riders a spot to compete.

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Rider Field Sizes at the World Championships of Snowboarding


The World Championships of Snowboarding will have a maximum of 300 spots available for male and female athletes to compete across all disciplines. The estimated field sizes will be 70 riders for men in each discipline and 50 riders for women in each discipline. Big Air is still under discussion.

Minimum Requirements to Qualify


In order to participate in the World Championships of Snowboarding, riders will have to fulfill the following minimum requirement: ranked in the Men´s Top 250 or in the Women´s Top 125 on the respective WSPL (World Snowboarding Points List) discipline ranking.

WSPL Halfpipe includes all Halfpipe and Quarterpipe competitions globally and will rank riders who have competed at least once in the last 52 weeks prior to the cut-off date. WSPL Slopestyle includes all Slopestyle competitions globally and will rank riders who have competed at least once in the last 52 weeks.

A rider’s position on the respective WSPL is determined by the average of his/her best three results for the WSPL Halfpipe and best four results for the WSPL Slopestyle over a rolling 52 week period. The cut-off date for qualification into the 2016 event will be Tuesday, December 15th, 2015.

QUALIFICATION CRITERIA


Riders can qualify for a spot to compete in the World Championships of Snowboarding through one of the following four criteria (minimum requirements have to be fulfilled).

• World Snowboarding Points List Quota (WSPL)

Male riders ranked 50 or higher and female riders ranked 30 or higher, on the WSPL at the cut-off date in the respective discipline. The cut-off date for qualification into the 2016 event will be Thursday, December 15th, 2015.

The Top50 Men and Top30 Women on the WSPL Halfpipe or Slopestyle at the announced cut-off date (15th December 2015) will be automatically eligible to compete in the respective discipline at the event.

• WSF Nations Quota

Each WSF member is entitled to qualify one rider for both men and women in each discipline. Therefore, each nation is entitled to a maximum of 4 spots and will need to use a national event, such as a national championships event, or national criteria approved by the WSF Event Committee, to qualify riders. NSA´s must submit their proposed criteria until latest Friday, December 19th , 2014. All national quota spots for the 2016 event must be announced by the National Snowboard Associations no later than Friday, December 15th, 2015. If one or several riders are already eligible to compete through one of the other qualification criteria, the open spot falls to the best national rider not yet qualified based on the defined national qualification criteria.

• TTR World Champions and Elite Level Winners

All TTR World Tour Champions from the last three years (2012/13, 2013/14, 2014/15) are eligible to compete in all disciplines at the World Championships of Snowboarding. All World Snowboard Tour Elite Level title winners from the last 52 weeks prior to 08.03.2015 are eligible to compete in the discipline in which they won the title.

• Local Organizing Committee Wild Cards

The organizing committee of the World Championships of Snowboarding is entitled to qualify two additional competitors in each discipline for men and women (eight total wild cards) who all need to be approved by TTR/WSF.

Registration Process


Registration for and entry into the World Championships of Snowboarding is free to all riders who meet the defined qualification criteria. All qualified riders are required to confirm their attendance no more than seven days after the qualification spots have been announced. Riders will be contacted individually via email to complete the registration process. The exact date of this deadline will be communicated at least four weeks before the cut-off date for qualification (15.12.2015). If a rider fails to confirm his/her attendance until the deadline, the rider will lose the right to compete at the event. Any open spots on the entry list may be given to alternates. The use of such open spots as wild cards or to enter alternate riders will be decided upon by WSF/TTR in conjunction with the local organizing committee of the the WCS.

Titles, Awards and Prize Money at the World Championships of Snowboarding


Riders will be competing for male and female Halfpipe World Champion, Slopestyle World Champion titles and Big Air World Champion at the World Championships of Snowboarding. These World Champion titles will be awarded to the winning male and female rider in each discipline. In addition, all top three finishers in each discipline (first, second and third place finishers) will receive recognition in the form of a medal/trophy along with prize money.

ABOUT WORLD SNOWBOARD FEDERATION. The World Snowboard Federation (WSF) is the international organization exclusively working to develop the sport of snowboarding at all levels. Program areas include: competitions, Para-Snowboard, judge and shapers, education and certification, and snowboard activities for riders of every age. The WSF represents a network of National Snowboard Associations (NSAs) who work together at a worldwide level to promote the development of snowboarding. NSA members can find a source of inspiration and support from the WSF for the activities they are conducting within their nation and by working towards the same goal: progression of snowboarding from the ground up. The WSF collaborates with the TTR Pro Snowboarding, the owner and operator of the TTR World Snowboard Tour and the TTR World Ranking System. Through this collaboration and coordination of events at the TTR World Snowboard Tour, The WSF and the TTR want to create an environment that fosters the development of competitive snowboarding. In February 2012, the WSF and the TTR hosted the inaugural World Snowboarding Championships in Oslo, Norway, an elite level event to be held every four years in alternating cities around the world.

About TTR Pro Snowboarding & World Snowboard Tour. TTR Pro Snowboarding is a non-profit organization that oversees a professional network of events and athletes. Our objective is to develop and showcase the sport of snowboarding while facilitating a fair and open competition environment that includes innovative judging and ranking systems. We encourage riders to develop from rookies into world-class athletes through our 4-tiered rating system. TTR Pro Snowboarding owns the World Snowboard Tour, the TTR World Ranking System and the World Championships of Snowboarding. The World Snowboard Tour includes Halfpipe, Slopestyle and Big Air events, and awards Championship titles in each discipline. www.worldsnowboardtour.com

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WSF and TTR Pro Snowboarding GA 2014

WSF_GA_2014

One week left to the General Assembly 2014 in Barcelona (30th May – 1st June 2014) where more than 20 nations from all the world will sit together to plan the next year season.
Welcome the new national associations, present the World Championships of Snowboarding (WCS) in Yabuli 2016, the launch of the new WSF website and Remi Forsans from OSV (Outdoor Sport Valley) are just few of the topics in agenda.
Download here the official document and get in contact with us if you would like to take part to GA.

Please note that slight modifications of the program might occur. if you plan to visit us to attend a specific meeting, please get in contact with: annamaria@worldsnowboardfederation.org