Bakuriani 2023 slopestyle silver medallist Nummedal announces retirement
May 12, 2023·Freeski Park & Pipe
Two-time Olympian and Bakuriani 2023 World Championships slopestyle silver medallist Christian Nummedal of Norway announced his retirement from competition on Friday, just after one of the most impressive seasons of his lengthy career.
A pillar of the Norwegian Freeski Landslaget during what has been a staggeringly successful period for the team, Nummedal made his World Cup debut back in the 2010/11 season and grabbed his first World Cup podium at Silvaplana (SUI) in 2013/14 - although it wasn’t until the 2016/17 campaign that he was promoted to the national team.
Nummedal’s first World Cup victory came that season on home soil at Voss-Myrkdalen, and he followed that up in 2017/18 by claiming two big air victories on his way to earning the big air crystal globe as the season’s top overall competitor, - becoming the first Norwegian man to win a FIS Freeski globe in the process.
The biggest podium of Nummedal’s career, however, came this past season where he put down a storming second run in Bakuriani to claim slopestyle silver just behind his close friend and teammate Birk Ruud.
While the Bakuriani podium was the most important of Nummedal’s career, perhaps the most incredible story of his time on the international stage came at the 2020 Dew Tour, where he was entered into competition at the last minute as the third alternate and then proceeded to claim an unexpected victory amongst a stacked field.
Though his silver medal performance in Bakuriani is still fresh in his mind, when we got in touch with Nummedal for comment the 27-year-old explained that the time felt right to explore new horizons, despite his recent success.
“It’s been a hard and emotional decision,” Nummedal says, “But it feels like the right move for me going forward. I’m extremely proud and happy about my career, and it feels great to end it all on a high note with the silver medal from Georgia.
“The first World Cup I rode was actually in Kreischberg 2011, in halfpipe…haha…so it’s been a long time coming. It feels good to close off this chapter and I’m exited to open the next. I’ve still got so much love for this sport and everyone in it and I can’t wait to watch the next generation kill it - from the sidelines.”
We say thanks to Nummi for all he’s given to competitive freeskiing over the years and wish him all the best in his future endeavours!
