The Snow League Announces New Anti-Spin-to-Win Rule and Athlete Roster for New Zealand Event

You’ve probably heard your favorite skier complain about “spin-to-win” in recent years.

Spin-to-win, at its core, is the natural progression of freestyle sports that reward athletes for absurd aerial stunts, but the consequences have started to outweigh the benefits.

Yes, it is insane to watch Troy Podmilsak throw a 2160 in Big Air (six rotations for those keeping score at home), but many spectators, and even the live event commentators themselves, simply can’t keep up visually.

In short, five rotations look awfully similar to six rotations, making it hard for the audience to discern which skier threw down a better trick.

We’ve seen skiers like Alex Hall and Duncan Adams throw ridiculous zero spins in competitions to combat the spin-to-win mentality, but The Snow League will be the first major event to implement rule changes in response.

Season Two of The Snow League will kick off at Cardrona Alpine Resort, New Zealand, on September 18-19, 2026. It’s been dubbed the Snow League World Challenge, and it will feature a rule that prohibits athletes from spinning more than twice (720) in a single air in the Semi-Final round. The Finals will be anything goes, but the Semis will be all about style.

This format was reportedly requested by the riders, and it’s unclear whether it will remain for the rest of The Snow League’s Season 2 events. Regardless, I’m planning to attend The Snow League World Challenge next month, and I can’t wait to see how it plays out.

Here’s hoping we see zero spins, weird grabs, and enough steeze to satisfy our non-spin-to-win desires. Keep reading for a breakdown of the athletes, venue, and more.

The Snow League World Challenge New Zealand 2026 Athlete Roster

Team North America

• Women’s Snowboard: Brooke D’Hondt (CAN)
• Men’s Snowboard: Jake Pates (USA)
• Women’s Freeski: Amy Fraser (CAN)
• Men’s Freeski: Hunter Hess (USA)

Team Europe

• Women’s Snowboard: Queralt Castellet (ESP)
• Men’s Snowboard: Jonas Hasler (SUI)
• Women’s Freeski: Kelly Sildaru (EST)
• Men’s Freeski: Jon Sallinen (FIN)

Team Asia-Pacific

• Women’s Snowboard: Gaon Choi (KOR)
• Men’s Snowboard: Cam Melville Ives (NZL)
• Women’s Freeski: Indra Brown (AUS)
• Men’s Freeski: Luke Harrold (NZL)

Team Challengers

• Women’s Snowboard: Sara Shimizu (JPN)
• Men’s Snowboard: Ryusei Yamada (JPN)
• Women’s Freeski: Mischa Thomas (NZL)
• Men’s Freeski: Fin Melville Ives (NZL)

Event Format

“This first-ever, team-based format highlights the global depth of snowboarding and freeskiing while creating a new competitive dynamic separate from the league’s individual season standings. Teams will compete across men’s and women’s snowboard and freeski disciplines in a fast-paced head-to-head format. The unique competition features creative semifinal rounds with a 720-degree spin cap before opening the finals to full progression, with team points accumulated to crown the inaugural Snow League World Challenge champions.”

Schedule of Events

Friday, September 18, 2026

• Open Athlete Halfpipe Practice: 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. local time at Cardrona Alpine Resort
• Mini-Pipe Challenge featuring Shaun White, Snow League athletes, local young skiers and riders: 1:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. local time at Cardrona Alpine Resort

Saturday, Sept. 19, 2026

• The Snow League World Challenge: 9:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. at Cardrona Alpine Resort
• Awards Ceremony & Apres Set: 2:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. at the Base Area Plaza

How To Watch The Snow League World Challenge New Zealand 2026

The New Zealand event will stream live on The Snow League’s YouTube channel on
Friday, September 18th, beginning at 5:30 pm ET (Saturday, September 19th at 9:30 am
NZST) followed by a one-hour encore presentation on Sunday, December 27, 2026, at 2:00
pm ET on NBC.

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