NZ snowboarder Zoi Sadowski-Synnott is currently flying back from China, where she competed in the finals of the Air + Style FIS Snowboard World Cup in Beijing. Sadowski-Synnott finished second in her qualifying heat last Thursday but fell to eighth in the finals. 

Sadowski-Synnott, who is the current World Champion in women’s snowboard slopestyle, and a 2019 X Games silver medallist in big air, scored 165.75 points in the best-two-of-three run qualification, landing a backside 720 melon grab and switch backside 900 stalefish. 

The Air + Style is one of the world’s premier snowboard competitions running for over 25 years. “She grew up with the dream of winning Olympic and X Games medals,” said Alex Kerr, Communications Manager at Snow Sports NZ. “Zoi has grown up in Wānaka, training at the Snow Park (now closed) when she was younger and now at Cardrona Alpine Resort. Cardrona is the home resort for the NZ park and pipe team (freeski and snowboard) so all of our athletes base themselves in Wānaka for the winter and train there. Zoi went to school at Mt Aspiring College in Wānaka and finished year 13 last year so she is very much a Wānaka local,” shared Kerr. 

Sadowki-Synnott was on solid form during the qualifying rounds and second in her heat, but couldn’t hold on to her landings for her three jumps on finals night and finished in eighth.

The winner of the previous two Air + Style big air World Cups, Anna Gasser (AUT) finished second, Laurie Blouin (CAN) third.