Karava and Samnoey claim first World Cup victories at Big Air Beijing
Dec 06, 2025·Freeski Park & Pipe
Persistence has paid off for Anni Karava (FIN) and Ulrik Samnoey (NOR) after both skiers secured their first career Big Air World Cup victories in Beijing on Saturday.
Karava topped the women’s final at Big Air Beijing with a score of 175.50 ahead of China’s Liu Mengting on 172.25.
Canada’s Naomi Urness finished third with a score of 171.50, with Liu and Urness swapping podium places in Beijing a week after the Canadian finished second ahead of Liu at the Big Air season opener in Secret Garden.
Karava’s win is her first World Cup victory in 47 starts, and follows her fourth place finish in Secret Garden last week.
The 25-year-old started Saturday’s final with a switch left cork 1080 opposite tailgrab, which earned her a score of 85.25 from the judges.
Karava then took the lead after scoring 89.25 in her second run for her left double cork 1080 mute. With victory already in hand going into the third run, the Finnish skier then delivered a more polished version of her first trick to secure a higher score of 86.25, pushing her combined total to 175.50 at her maiden World Cup win.
The win is Karava’s fourth Big Air World Cup top-three finish since claiming two third-place and one second-place finish last season.
The 25-year-old also claimed bronze at the Engadin 2025 FIS Freeski World Championships in March, as well as two bronze medals at the 2025 X Games in slopestyle and knuckle huck.
Urness’ result on Saturday is her second podium in just four World Cup starts after the 21-year-old made her tour debut in February.
Last week’s winner in Secret Garden, Kirsty Muir (GBR), finished fourth on Saturday.
In the men’s event, Norway’s Ulrik Samnoey topped the field with a score of 184.00 after delivering the highest score of the day with a left triple 1980 safety to indy truckdriver in his second run which earned him 94.25 from the judges.
Combined with his first run score of 89.75 for his switch left triple 1800 safety to indy truckdriver, the 23-year-old had already secured victory when he landed a switch left dub 900 blunt in his third run.
“I don’t know what to say, I’m speechless. I’ve been working so hard for this and putting it down today and getting the victory lap as well made it all,” said Samnoey.
Big Air World Champion Luca Harrington (NZL) was runner-up on 182.50, while last season’s Park & Pipe Crystal Globe winner Matej Svancer (AUT) finished third on 180.00.
Fifteen-year-old Frank Wahlstroem (NOR) finished fourth behind Svancer in what was his second World Cup event after making his tour debut in Secret Garden.
Samnoey said a lot of work behind the scenes went into Saturday’s victory, which is his second top-three finish in 44 starts after previously earning a third-place finish in Destne (CZE) in 2020.
“I think you’ve just got to find confidence in what you do, no matter what that is. It could be just shredding, lacing runs in competition, it could be from training. I feel like this season I’ve been putting so many hours into it and every bit of it is paying off and I’m climbing up the steps,” he said.
Securing a win in the second of three qualifying events for the upcoming Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games also relieves some of the pressure ahead of the next World Cup in Steamboat (USA).
“This is quite the relief but the (Norwegian) team is better than ever and you don’t know who is winning next week. So I’ll keep on doing my best and then we’ll see,” said Samnoey.
Fellow Norwegian and Beijing 2022 Big Air champion Birk Ruud finished ninth on Saturday.
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