Athletes across the Americas (Region 2), compete in International Free Skiers Association (IFSA) comps throughout the winter season to earn themselves an invite to the Freeride World Tour Challengers. This includes three competitions where the best of the best compete to win a qualifying ticket to next year’s Freeride World Tour.Â
This year’s Challengers consisted of a stop at Whitewater, in Nelson, BC, and two back to back stops at Kicking Horse, in Golden, BC. All athletes were laser focused on securing their ticket to the 2027 FWT, learning how to handle the pressure and put fear on the back burner are essential elements to high level competing.
The best two out of three scores count toward qualification. Athletes must work to find the balance between huge tricks and controlled skiing to impress the judges. This led to some outstanding performances throughout these three comps.
The top four riders from the ski men category qualify for the Freeride World Tour. Kane Gascoigne (CAN), Kai Morgan (USA), Nathan Pruzan (USA), and Tyler Curle (USA) were this season’s top skiers and, with outstanding performances in IFSA comps all season and competitive runs in the Challengers, have punched their tickets to the tour.
In the ski women’s category, American athletes Hannah Baldwin and Delilah Quinn came out on top and are headed to the tour. Baldwin won the Junior World Champion title last season and Quinn was a previous skier on the tour in 2023. Both are quite familiar with success and came into this season ready to dominate.
Two snowboard men are off to the 2027 tour from Region 2 as well. Holden Samuels and Johnny Duty, both US riders, earned identical points in the Challengers. Samuels will be a returning Pro Tour athlete while Duty prepares to make his FWT debut. They are both incredibly strong athletes riding out of Region 2.
Finally, one snowboard woman earned herself the qualifying spot. Audrey Hébert, riding out of Canada, is no stranger to the tour. She was a participant in 2017, 2018, and 2025. Two other Canadian athletes finished behind her, narrowly missing qualification.
The final stop of the Region 1 Challenger is set for next week and will solidify the 2027 FWT roster.