Calgary SB Halfpipe World Cup: Stats Preview

Calgary (CAN) hosted its first FIS Halfpipe World Cup in the 2006/07 season, and the 2026 edition is the 12th time Calgary is hosting a World Cup event after the 2021 edition was cancelled and only Slopestyle events were held in Calgary in 2022. Last season Calgary hosted the Halfpipe World Cup season finale.

Stats Men

• The 2025/26 Halfpipe World Cup season started with three Japanese men on the podium in Secret Garden (CHN): Ayumu Hirano (JPN) in first, Yuto Totsuka (JPN) in second, and Ruka Hirano (JPN) in third. To date, this is one of two podium sweeps in the 2025/26 FIS Snowboard World Cup season, with Italy securing the other podium sweep in Men’s Parallel Giant Slalom in Carezza (ITA).

• In this season’s second Halfpipe World Cup in Copper (USA), Japan claimed the first two spots on the podium with Ryusei Yamada (JPN) winning the event and Yuto Totsuka (JPN) in second and Valentino Guseli (AUS) in third. This was the first World Cup win for Yamada, who previously had two third-place finishes as his best result before Copper.

• There were no European athletes in the finals of the first two Halfpipe World Cup events.The best result recorded by a European athlete so far is 15th place in qualifications by Christophn Lechner (GER) at the Secret Garden season opener.

• Yuto Totsuka (JPN) surpassed Ross Powers (USA) as the snowboarder with the most Halfpipe World Cup podium finishes with his second place in Secret Garden (CHN). Totsuka now has 23 podium finishes in Halfpipe events, while Powers has 21. Ruka Hirano (JPN) is now tied with Powers on 21 podiums following his third-place finish in Secret Garden.

• Japanese men have reached the podium at every Halfpipe World Cup event in the last seven years, a run of 30 events dating back to 8 December 2018 when Scotty James (AUS), Toby Miller (USA) and Chase Josey (USA) were 1st-2nd-3rd in Copper.

• The last time a European man triumphed at a Halfpipe World Cup was December 2018 when Jan Scherrer (SUI) won in Secret Garden (CHN). Since then, the subsequent 29 World Cup events have been won by either a Japanese athlete (20 times) or an Australian athlete (nine times).

• Patrick Burgener (BRA) has represented Brazil since the start of this season since switching over from the Swiss team, and he finished fourth in Secret Garden (CHN). It marked the first time a rider representing Brazil finished inside the top 10 at a FIS Snowboard Park & Pipe World Cup. Burgener was 13th in Copper (USA).

• The previous Halfpipe World Cup in Calgary was won by Ruka Hirano (JPN), with Yuto Totsuka (JPN) in second and Alessandro Barbieri (USA) in third. That third place is the only podium finish by an American man in this discipline in almost three years. This win allowed Hirano to claim his third consecutive Halfpipe Crystal Globe, becoming the first male athlete to do so as no other snowboarder has won more than two consecutive Halfpipe Crystal Globe trophies.

• Ruka Hirano (JPN), Yuto Totsuka (JPN) and Scotty James (AUS) have three Halfpipe Crystal Globes each, and if any of them win the discipline Crystal Globe in 2025/26 he will become the first male athlete to win four Halfpipe Crystal Globes. Retired Japanese rider Ryo Aono (JPN) has three Halfpipe Crystal Globe trophies.

Stats Women

• Gaon Choi (KOR) won the 2025/26 Halfpipe World Cup season opener in Secret Garden (CHN) ahead of Rise Kudo (JPN) and Cai Xuetong (CHN). 

• Gaon Choi (KOR) also won the second Halfpipe World Cup event in Copper (USA), ahead of runner-up Sena Tomita (JPN) and Bea Kim (USA). The last woman to start a Halfpipe World Cup season with two wins was Chloe Kim (USA) in 2020/21.

• Gaon Choi (KOR) has reached the podium in five of her six career World Cup starts, with a sixth place in Laax (SUI) in 2023/24 as the exception. She is the only rider from the Republic of Korea with a Halfpipe World Cup victory to her name, though her compatriot Cheaun Lee won gold in men’s halfpipe at the Bakuriani 2023 World Championships. She previously won one Halfpipe World Cup event prior to this season, at her World Cup debut in Copper in December 2023.

• Bea Kim (USA) claimed her second World Cup podium of her career in Copper (USA). She has eight World Cup starts so far and she finished in the top 10 in all of them, with her worst result being seventh place in Secret Garden last season.

• Rise Kudo (JPN) claimed her first career World Cup podium with second place at the Secret Garden season opener. She then finished seventh in Copper (USA) in December.

• Cai Xuetong (CHN) is one victory away from equaling Tricia Byrnes (USA) who leads the all-time record for Halfpipe World Cup wins with 15. Cai’s last World Cup win was in December 2023.

• None of the last 14 women’s Halfpipe World Cup events featured a European rider on the podium. No European athlete has recorded a top-three result since Berenice Wicki (SUI) finished third in Calgary (CAN) in February 2023.

• Queralt Castellet Ibanez (ESP) is the last European snowboarder to claim a World Cup win in this discipline when she triumphed in Copper (USA) in December 2022. She has not recorded a podium finish at a World Cup since that win, but currently has a streak of 16 top-10 results in Halfpipe World Cup events.

• Queralt Castellet Ibanez (ESP) was the only European athlete to qualify for the finals in both Secret Garden and Copper, with her best result of the two finals being seventh place in Secret Garden.

• Isabelle Loetscher (SUI) finished fifth in Secret Garden and 13th in Copper. The last snowboarder representing Switzerland to win a women’s Halfpipe World Cup event was Manuela Laura Pesko (SUI) in Valmalenco (ITA) in 2007/08.