Historic moments and fierce rivalries mark memorable Snowboard Cross 2025/26 winter

With the conclusion of the 2025/26 FIS Snowboard Cross World Cup season, we look back at another winter of high-intensity racing, dramatic finishes, and fierce competition as athletes battled for Crystal Globes across one of the most competitive campaigns in recent years.

From Cervinia (ITA) to the thrilling season finale in Mt. St. Anne (CAN), the winter once again showcased everything that defines Snowboard Cross (SBX) — speed, unpredictability, physical racing, and intense four-rider heats. The World Cup circuit brought the global spotlight to key racing hubs across Europe, North America, and Asia, anchored by another important return to China during the middle part of the season with races held at a new venue in Dongbeiya. Tight heats, last-second overtakes, crashes, and photo finishes further underlined why Snowboard Cross remains one of the most exciting disciplines in snow sports.

With the season-opener kicking things off beneath the majestic backdrop of the Matterhorn in Cervinia (ITA), the first weekend of the 2025/26 FIS SBX World Cup immediately sparked a collection of memorable storylines. France’s Jonas Chollet produced one of the biggest surprises of the winter by claiming victory at just 17 years old in the first race of his rookie World Cup campaign. Adding even more significance to the moment, Chollet shared the podium with his older brother Aidan, creating a standout family story to ignite the season.

Cervinia also hosted the season’s only Mixed Team World Cup competition, where Charlotte Bankes and Huw Nightingale charged to the top spot for Great Britain. The result proved to be an early sign of what would become one of the strongest Snowboard Cross seasons in recent years for the British team.

For Bankes in particular, the victory marked an important return to the top after an injury setback at the end of 2024/25. Following an intensive rehabilitation process, the British rider defied a severely shortened preseason window, executing a remarkably efficient transition back to the snow just ahead of the Cervinia opener to quickly rediscover her championship form.

The sparkling storylines of 2025/26 did not stop there, as a prominent group of experienced athletes made their return to the tour as mothers. Eva Adamczyková (CZE), Chloe Trespeuch (FRA), Faye Thelen (USA), and Meghan Daniel (USA) each made successful comebacks to the SBX tour, once again competing at the sport’s highest level while balancing motherhood and elite competition.

With the buildup to the Winter Olympics amping up the drama, the World Cup circuit brought the intensity to Asia, where the discipline's newest venue in Dongbeiya (CHN) hosted back-to-back races.

Australia’s Adam Lambert kept his breakthrough campaign rolling in China, charging to his third consecutive podium finish of the winter by triumphantly claiming his maiden World Cup victory — the crowning achievement of a career-best season. Meanwhile, Chloe Trespeuch put an exclamation point on her remarkable comeback with a pair of individual podium finishes, while Charlotte Bankes seized another victory to snatch the lead in the overall World Cup standings.

Fresh off the Olympic battles in Livigno (ITA), the tour shifted into overdrive with a gruelling March schedule. With four races remaining in the final month of the season, the fight for the Crystal Globes was officially set to go down to the wire.

The ensuing double-header took place in Erzurum (TUR), anchoring a crucial stage of the championship chase as athletes battled both a high-stakes track and challenging weather conditions.

Germany's Leon Ulbricht inserted himself into the title conversation in Turkey, storming to back-to-back podium finishes — including a spectacular victory and a second-place result — to solidify his status as the season's premier breakout rider. On the women's side, defending Crystal Globe champion Lea Casta (FRA) and Charlotte Bankes continued their fierce battle for the overall title, splitting the victories across the two race days, while a dominant French squad punctuated the weekend by pulling off a flawless podium sweep in one of the women's events.

Switzerland’s Noemie Wiedmer celebrated a monumental milestone in Turkey, charging to the first World Cup podium of her career on the second race day in Erzurum. Meanwhile, the Chollet brothers rekindled their sibling rivalry on the Turkish slopes, sharing the World Cup podium once again. This time, it was older brother Aidan who stood atop the box, adding another memorable chapter to the season's definitive family storyline.

Next on the Snowboard Cross calendar was Montafon (AUT) — a venue with a deep SBX history where this past season’s race served as the crucial dress rehearsal for the upcoming FIS Snowboard, Freestyle and Freeski World Championships next winter.

As local hero and back-to-back Olympic champion Alessandro Haemmerle (AUT) returned to one of the tour's most electric settings, expectations among the home crowd were sky-high. However, it was teammate Jakob Dusek who stole the show, claiming a spectacular victory in front of the passionate Montafon crowd to cap off his impressive 2025/26 campaign. On the women's side, Sina Siegenthaler (SUI) cruised to the second World Cup victory of her career. Meanwhile, the men's title race reached a boiling point as the gap between Leon Ulbricht (GER) and Aidan Chollet (FRA) shrank to a single, razor-thin point heading into the final showdown of the season.

For the fourth consecutive season, the World Cup finals took place in Mt. St. Anne (CAN), where the battle for the Crystal Globes reached its ultimate conclusion. With multiple riders still mathematically in contention ahead of the final race weekend, every heat carried serious significance, and it became quickly clear that the overall titles would only be decided in the closing moments of the last race.

After one of the tightest and most competitive Snowboard Cross seasons in recent years, Charlotte Bankes (GBR) and Leon Ulbricht (GER) ultimately clinched the Crystal Globes in the decisive final heats of the winter.

With the final race of the season in the books, the French team retained its dominance at the top of the Snowboard Cross Nations Cup standings after another exceptionally strong winter, highlighted by a staggering 16 podium finishes across the World Cup campaign.

Across five venues and eight World Cup races, a new generation of riders repeatedly challenged the sport’s well-established names, with experienced athletes and younger talents regularly sharing podiums and finals during the season.

Among the many riders who showcased breakthrough moments and standout performances during the 2025/26 campaign, France’s Jonas Chollet emerged as one of the biggest revelations of the season, while Spain’s Alvaro Romero Villanueva made a successful return to World Cup competition following last season’s injury setback. Riders such as Italy’s Filippo Ferrari, Yongqinglamu (CHN), Brianna Schnorrbusch (USA), Theodore McLemore (USA), Nathan Pare (USA), Evan Bichon (CAN), Noah Bethonico (BRA), Lisa Francesia Boirai (ITA), Guillaume Herpin (FRA), and Australia’s James Johnstone were also instrumental in shaping some memorable moments during the season, further underlining the increasing depth and international competitiveness across the Snowboard Cross World Cup circuit.

The season also marked a poignant transition for the sport as several notable careers came to a close. Among those retiring from competitive racing were Austria’s David Pickl, Switzerland’s Aline Albrecht, France’s Julien Tomas — famed for executing spectacular tricks over the final rollers — and Australia’s Belle Brockhoff, who announced her retirement ahead of the Olympic Winter Games following ongoing injury struggles.

Attention is already shifting toward the 2026/27 FIS Snowboard Cross World Cup season, with optimism surrounding another diverse international calendar and several key events expected to return to the schedule.

The definitive highlight of the upcoming winter will be the FIS Snowboard, Freestyle and Freeski World Championships in Montafon (AUT), where expectations are already building around the Austrian home team. The championships are poised to provide another major showcase for Snowboard Cross in one of the sport’s most passionate winter sports regions.