U.S. Ski & Snowboard nominates 13 athletes for first freeride team

U.S. Ski & Snowboard has nominated 13 athletes for its inaugural freeride roster, creating the country’s first official pathway towards the discipline’s Olympic debut at the Alpes 2030 Winter Games.

The athletes are not yet formal team members. They must accept their nominations and meet the organisation’s expectations, with the confirmed roster due in October.

The group includes Mia Jones, the 2026 FIS Freeride World Champion in women’s snowboard. Men’s skier Kai Jones and women’s skier Molly Armanino won bronze medals at the same championships in Andorra, while Joey Leonardo is a Junior World Champion.

The other ski nominees are Lily Bradley, Wynter McBride, Kelly Hilleke, Toby Rafford and Ross Tester. Michael Mawn, Blake Moller, Holden Samuels and Shayne Blue Sandblom complete the snowboard nominations.

Freeride moves into the Olympic system

Freeride competitors descend terrain that is natural and ungroomed, choosing routes around features including cliffs and chutes. Judges assess route selection along with control, fluidity, technique and style instead of elapsed time.

The International Olympic Committee added freeride to the Alpes 2030 programme in July. There will be men’s and women’s events in both skiing and snowboarding, with 44 athlete places divided equally between women and men.

FIS acquired the Freeride World Tour in 2022 and formally recognised freeride as a sport in 2024. The first FIS Freeride World Championships followed in Andorra in February 2026, moving the discipline from an independent contest circuit into the international federation system.

“Bringing this discipline into our high-performance system means our coaches and sport scientists can start supporting these athletes now, well ahead of 2030,” Anouk Patty, U.S. Ski & Snowboard’s chief of sport, said when the organisation announced its freeride programme.

The structure places freeride skiers within the Stifel U.S. Freeski Team and snowboarders within the Hydro Flask U.S. Snowboard Team. The International Freeskiers & Snowboarders Association will continue to oversee grassroots competitions.

Team status does not automatically guarantee funding. The published snowboard nomination criteria also require a valid U.S. passport, a USA-coded FIS licence and an athlete agreement, while allowing discretionary selection based on factors including injury and future medal potential.

The route to the Games remains unsettled. The Olympic qualification system is expected around December 2026, with Freeride World Tour competitions and rankings likely to provide the main route. The venue and competition dates have yet to be confirmed.