Australia’s Moguls juniors shine at Perisher as winter season hits peak

Australia’s moguls season is in full swing, and prime winter conditions set the stage for another big weekend of competition as the NSW Freestyle Junior Series moved to Perisher. More than 75 emerging athletes across youth and junior divisions took to the slopes for two days of high-energy moguls action, further cementing Australia’s strong development pathway in freestyle skiing.

The event was held at Blue Cow on the Mogul Matt’s Course, named in honour of Olympic silver medallist Matt Graham, and served as a bridge between grassroots participation and elite-level competition. Athletes put their turns, aerials, and speed to the test across single moguls on day one and dual moguls on day two, all with the title of NSW Junior Mogul Champion on the line.

In the women’s junior category, Kayleigh Yap posted a commanding 81.41 points to take gold, followed by Ruby Kite in second and Kareema Wakim in third. The youth division saw Eliza Walker take the win with 67.71 points, edging out Victoria Jones and Billie Paxton. On the men’s side, Angus Kite led the junior division with 77.87 points ahead of Callum Cook and Hugh Buttling, while the youth crown went to Max Cook with 60.66 points, followed by Edward Mason and Samuel Brooks.

Sunday brought head-to-head excitement with several podium rematches. Kareema Wakim turned the tables on Yap to claim the women’s junior win, while Ruby Kite beat Eliza Peake for third. In the youth women’s event, Eliza Walker held her ground for another victory over Paxton, with Jones in third. The men’s junior dual moguls title went to Milo Davies ahead of Tor Paxton, with Buttling defeating Cooper Cook for third. Max Cook continued his dominance in the youth division, with Teddy Madson second and Ben Hodgkinson securing third after the minor final over Luca Kingham.

Meanwhile, Perisher’s famous Poppa’s Dream course is now open and ready for action — with Australian star Matt Graham already giving fans a first-hand POV of what’s in store this winter.

The moguls momentum shows no sign of slowing. The ANC series heads next to Perisher for back-to-back moguls competitions on August 26–27, before moving south to Mt Buller for dual moguls on August 30.