Canada Snowboard – Saskatchewan native nabs gold in first contest back since injury

Vancouver, B.C – Less than a year after suffering a harrowing injury in the Whistler backcountry, Mark McMorris (Regina, SK) grabbed the top spot at Saturday’s Beijing Air + Style Big Air World Cup. It was his first contest back since his injury, as McMorris continues to prepare for next year’s PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympic Games.
 
Facing a world cup field in competition for the first time in almost 8 months, McMorris got off to  flying start in qualification, taking the top spot in his qualification heat with a score of 83.00. In the final, McMorris dazzled the judges, performing a Frontside Triple Cork 1440 mute and a Backside Triple Cork 1440 indy to grab a combined score of 187.00. 
 
McMorris was joined on the podium by Tiarn Collins (NZL) in 2nd and Torgeir Bergrem (NOR) in 3rd.
 
Narrowly missing out on a spot in the final,  Brooke Voigt (Fort McMurray, AB) was the top Canadian female finisher in 8th. Gillian Andrewshenko (Winnipeg, MB) finished her day in 11th.
 
Full results
 
Canadian riders will continue to battle it out for an Olympic team nomination, with several of Canada’s top male Slopestyle riders heading to next week’s Banana Open, including McMorris, Sebastien Toutant (L’Assomption, QC), Darcy Sharpe (Comox, BC) and Mikey Ciccarelli (Ancaster, ON).

To schedule an interview with an athlete, please contact: 
 
Eric Escaravage
Communications Coordinator
Canada Snowboard
Eric.escaravage@canadasnowboard.ca
(613)-862-6532

About Canada Snowboard
Canada Snowboard is the national governing body for snowboarding in Canada. With the support of valued corporate partners like The Canadian Tire Corporation, Mackenzie Financial, FA Design, Burton Snowboards, Zanier Gloves, and Mazda Canada, along with the Government of Canada, Own the Podium, the Canadian Olympic Committee, and the Canadian Paralympic Committee; Canada Snowboard is committed to high performance excellence in FIS World Cup, World Championships, World Snowboard Tour and Olympic & Paralympic Winter Games competition. Canada Snowboard also provides a wide range of programs and support services based on established principles of long-term athlete development. For more information on the services and programs offered by Canada Snowboard, visit: www.canadasnowboard.ca