Freeride World Tour rookie and Le Bent athlete Isaac Freeland took the tour by storm this season with consistent runs, strong line selection and a bag of tricks that saw him end up on top of the men’s ski field with one final event remaining in Verbier, Switzerland.
While a decision was made to conclude the tour early and the Bec des Rosse face would not be skied on account of Covid-19 and burgeoning government lockdowns, a silver lining was our boy Isaac walked away with the world championship and rookie of the year title!
As much as everyone would have loved to see the guys and gals throw down in Verbier – Isaac included – congratulations are in order!
Isaac bagged an 11th at the first event in Kicking Horse, BC, before really kicking into gear with a 5th in Hakuba, Japan, followed up by back to back 2nd place finishes in Fieberbrunn, Austria and Ordino Alcalís, Andorra.
Check out the 2020 recap and some of Isaac’s sends below. If you find yourself with some free time these coming weeks – you can rewatch all the events at Freerideworldtour.com.
Isaac (middle) before the Kicking Horse event in BC. Isaac's wearing our Heather Gray Lightweight Balaclava. Pic cred: FWT/Dom Daher
Isaac mid run/mid air at Kicking Horse. Pic cred: FWT/Dom Daher
Isaac wasn’t the only team rider on the circuit this year. Skier Andrew Pollard, off the back of winning the 2019 rookie of the year award rounded out the Men’s podium in 3rd.
Andrew Pollard sending one at Kicking Horse where he grabbed 3rd. Pic cred: FWT/Dom Daher
Congratulations also to snowboarder Blake Hamm who finished 7th overall with a 3rd place result in Ordino Alcalís, Andorra, and to Emma Patterson who competed in the ski women’s event for the first time.
See below for the full statement from the Freeride World Tour on the decision to cancel the final event.
Statement From FWT:
Following the current situation concerning COVID-19, the Grande Finale of the Freeride World Tour 2020 and all Qualifier and Junior events have been cancelled.
Due to COVID-19 and the new measures put in place by the Swiss government today, we are sorry to announce the cancellation of the 2020 Verbier Xtreme, as well as all Junior and Qualifier events.
The situation surrounding COVID-19 is evolving rapidly, and the priority of the Freeride World Tour before everything else is to insure the health and safety of its fans, athletes, team and their peers.
The World Champions will be discerned from the current 2020 season rankings which will remain as they currently stand.
We would like to thank all of the athletes, fans, and staff for this incredible season.
