Steen, Woodring and McCarthy on top as Nor-Am Cup season comes to a close in Whistler

The 2025/26 FIS Park & Pipe North American Cup season wrapped up this past weekend in Whistler (CAN) with Freeski Slopestyle and Big Air action; the final two competitions in a season that saw the Freeskiers dropping in on five Slopestyle, four Halfpipe, three Big Air, and two Rail Event competitions spread across six resorts in Canada and the U.S.A. 

The big winner on the women’s Freeski side of things was the USA’s Lainey Steen, who announced herself as a triple-threat star in the making with what has to be one of the most dominant seasons in the history of the Nor-Am Cup. 

Across Slopestyle, Big Air, Halfpipe, and Rails, Steen dropped in on a total of 14 Nor-Am competitions in 2025/26, registering nine wins and 13 podiums in those competitions to top both the Slopestyle/Big Air and the Halfpipe standings. Needless to say, Steen has earned herself an extremely well deserved personal spot on both those tours for the World Cup season in 2026/27. 

When you throw in her Junior World Championships showing in Calgary, where she won gold in Slopestyle, Big Air, and Rails competitions while finishing with the silver in Halfpipe, you are looking at 17 podiums in 18 FIS competition starts. Truly remarkable. 

Over on the junior men’s side of the Slopestyle/Big Air equation it was another U.S. prodigy finally having his breakthrough on the FIS competition stage, as Walker Woodring returned to competition following a season off due to injury and dominated the final three events of the season to end up on top of the Nor-Am standings and through to a guaranteed World Cup spot next season. 

While Woodring’s 2025/26 season’s started somewhat unimpressively with a 51st place finish at the Aspen Snowmass (USA) Slopestyle Nor-Am, and later saw the 16-year-old fall just short of the podium at the Calgary JWCs with a fourth place finish in Big Air and a seventh in Slopestyle, he turned it on for the sprint to the finish winning Slopestyle’s in Mammoth Mountain (USA) and Aspen Buttermilk (USA) before capping off the season with the Big Air W at Whistler after the men’s Slopestyle final there was cancelled. 

In men’s Freeski Halfpipe it was the USA’s Cael McCarthy claiming the second Nor-Am title of his career, as the 20-year-old followed up his top ranking from the 2023/24 season to once again earn his way onto the World Cup circuit amongst the world-class U.S. squad.  

McCarthy claimed two victories and a runner-up finish in his five Nor-Am starts this season to top the standings on 280 points. Already a veteran of 15 World Cup starts, McCarthy will be looking next season to build on the career-best 10th place finish he earned at the 2025/26 World Cup Finals in Silvaplana just over a week ago. 

QUICK LINKS

• Freeski Nor-Am Cup standings

• Full Freeski Nor-Am Cup calendar and results