ANC season opens with heavy hitters on hand at Thredbo
Aug 08, 2025·Freeski Park & Pipe)
The 2025 Australia-New Zealand Cup season opened this past weekend in Australia, where an impressive field of 68 athletes across four divisions lined up for Thredbo’s Triple Crown: Slopestyle competition - an event sanctioned by FIS in 2025 and proudly part of the Australian New Zealand Cup (ANC) series.
With international points on offer and a generous cash and prize pool, the competition drew a mix of national and emerging athletes.
In the women’s snowboard, Australia's own Meila Stalker confirmed her place among the sport’s rising stars as she produced a commanding second run that scored an unassailable 91.67 points. Stalker lead an Australian sweep of the podium, with up-and-coming rider Ally Hickman bouncing back from a slow start to finish second overall after she scored 84.67 in her second run, and with Jess McGregor rounding out the podium after she also improved on her first run to score 69.67 in run two.
In the men's snowboard competition it was New Zealand's turn for the sweep, with 2021/22 World Cup slopestyle Crystal Globe winner Tiarn Collins asserting his dominance with a score of 92.17 for the win. Collins was followed up by his 15-year-old countryman Joshua Li in second place with a score of 89.33 for his first Continental Cup-level podium, while Zephyr Lovelock rounded out the top-3 with a score of 85.33.
The women's freeski event saw another victory for the host Aussies, as World Cup regular Daisy Thomas started off her 2025/26 competition season with a W on a score of 87.00. Thomas was followed up by New Zealand's Madeline Disbrowe in second with a with a score of 82.00, and 15-year-old Indra Brown claiming third on 75.67.
Over on the men's freeski side of things NZ's Fergus McArthur laid down a commanding second run to earn a winning score of 90.00 from each of the three judges. It was NZ in second place as well, with Lucas Ball opening strong with an 85.00 in his first run to be rewarded with the silver medal, while Aidan Laing of Australia bounced back from an underwhelming opening run to post an impressive 83.00 for third.
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