Young talent drives continued growth in Snowboard Alpine Asian Cup

From venues in China and Korea to Japan, the 2025/26 FIS Snowboard Alpine Asian Cup season showcased the growing reach of Snowboard Alpine across Asia, with increasing participation and rising young talents continuing to shape the future of the sport.

The season featured eight races, including four Parallel Giant Slalom and four Parallel Slalom competitions, staged across four venues. Events were held at Galaxy Ski Resort in China, Phoenix PyeongChang and O2 Resort in Korea, and Akan in Japan.

The Asian Cup field featured a broad mix of experienced racers and rising young talent, with several 15 and 16-year-old athletes already reaching finals and top-10 positions against more established competitors. The growing competitive depth across the tour once again highlighted the continued progress of Snowboard Alpine racing throughout Asia.

Japan proved to be the dominant nation across the tour this winter, particularly in the overall standings, where Japanese athletes swept both the women’s and men’s overall podiums.

On the women’s side, Hinano Oshima secured the overall Asian Cup title with 655 points following an impressive season that included four victories and six podium finishes. Fellow Japanese riders Noa Kanazawa and Suzumi Maeda completed the final standings podium in second and third place.

The men’s standings remained competitive until the final races of the season, with Daichi Shimizu ultimately claiming the overall title with 337 points ahead of teammate Naoki Kanematsu with 323 points. Shikoh Sugimoto secured third place overall.

Several events throughout the winter also showcased notably young fields. At races in China, Korea and Japan, riders born in 2008, 2009 and 2010 regularly qualified for finals and delivered standout performances against senior-level competition, further underlining the strong pipeline of talent emerging across the Asian Snowboard Alpine scene.

The 2025/26 Asian Cup season also reinforced the important role the tour plays in developing the next generation of Snowboard Alpine athletes. The growing depth of competition across the region continues to provide a strong foundation for the sport’s long-term development in Asia, while offering emerging talents an important pathway toward future World Cup and Olympic ambitions.