Professional winter sports enthusiasts are excited about the prospect of two new action sports leagues

It has long been known that snowboard and freeski athletes competing on the International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS) competition tour do not always enjoy the competitive atmosphere.

Whether it’s because of the scoring or the rigorous nature of the competitions, many professional riders and skiers look forward to non-FIS competitions all season long, such as the Winter X-Games in Aspen or the Dew Tour at Copper Mountain Resort, because these competitions are so relaxed, fun and fluid.

Athletes have often been reluctant to dress for FIS competitions, but that could change in the future as two new action sports leagues have been created in the last week.

On June 13, the X Games announced a new format for action sports that includes year-round competition and cross-discipline teams. A few days later, on June 17, three-time Olympic gold medalist Shaun White revealed his own plans for an action sports league, creating the Snow League, which will focus on snowboard and freeski halfpipe competitions.

Each league has committed to introducing new innovative formats that will excite not only the participating athletes, but also those who are committed to the sport. Following the announcement of the two leagues, professional winter sports athletes were quick to post their own reactions to the news, including professional freeskier Nick Goepper of Lawrenceburg, Indiana.

“Any innovation or new event in the competitive skiing and snowboarding space is really great,” Goepper said in an interview with Summit Daily News. “It brings a lot of vitality, diversity and economic opportunities for the sponsors and the athletes.”

Similar to Goepper, 2024 X-Games gold medalist and Silverthorne local Red Gerard can’t wait to see what the new leagues have to offer.

“I think it’s absolutely amazing,” Gerard said. “I think the more eyes you can get on a competitive scene like snowboarding, the more fun it is to watch.”

In many ways, Goepper, Gerard and other professional skiers and riders are unhappy with the current structure and rigidity of FIS competitions. Goepper and Gerard both argue that, unlike Olympic and World Cup competitions, the new leagues are proposed by individuals who have the opinion and welfare of the athletes in mind.

“It feels like it came from our own community, if that makes sense,” Goepper said. “With the Olympic movement and the Olympic events like the World Cup and all that stuff, it felt like we were being added to a bunch of other sports that already had a deep-rooted heritage and Olympic tradition.”

“Honestly, I think it’s good that the FIS doesn’t run any of this,” Gerard said. “I think in particular a league that is also run by snowboarders and not just ski racers – the FIS is solely in charge of ski racing – could be a really good thing. I’m a big fan of it.”

With the prospect of new competition formats such as head-to-head matches or teams to cheer for all season long, Goepper is confident that the planned leagues will take snowboarding and skiing back to its true roots.

“Skiing, surfing, ice skating – these action sports were invented in the 80s and 90s and established as pioneering sports because the other traditional mainstream sports were so inflexible and young people no longer wanted to take part,” said Goepper.

Gerard has been driving new, exciting competition formats over the past few years, ultimately helping to develop the Dew Tour’s annual super streetstyle competition at the base of Copper, where individual skiers and riders compete on a series of rail and jump elements.

“You don’t need a huge course to get people excited about snowboarding,” Gerard said. “Golfers play on any course and you get excited to watch them swing the golf club, and I think it’s the same with snowboarding. It doesn’t have to be this huge course that takes a lot of work to build. … People will definitely get excited to watch it.”

Another important aspect that professional athletes want to highlight is the fair compensation of participants when they put their bodies on the line by throwing their feet out of an icy halfpipe or off a giant ski jump.

For Goepper, it’s not necessarily about the prize money the leagues offer, but rather about having a big platform to showcase his freeskiing skills to dedicated fans.

“The prize money is honestly secondary,” Goepper said. “If you have a platform to showcase your skills, you can do whatever you want with it. You can gain followers on social media and get sponsorship deals. Make a lot more money than any prize money could ever pay.”

Ultimately, Goepper knows that skiing and snowboarding will probably never make as much money as mainstream sports like golf and soccer, but if more people get interested in the sport through the X Games League or the Snow League, it will open up more opportunities for athletes to make money.

“If someone gives us a platform to showcase our hard work and the things we love to do, I think that’s the most important thing,” Goepper said. “The Snow League and the X Games League will really help us do that.”

“I think the more competition the better,” Gerard said. “Shaun White, whether you’re a fan or not, made our sport great. I think him starting a league and the X Games starting a league just brings more people and more exposure, which is great in snowboarding.”

With much still unknown about the X Games League and Snow League, Goepper and Gerard believe the two companies will have the most success by investing in the participating athletes and continuing to restructure the current status quo for competitions.

“I think it’s a delicate balance between innovation and tradition,” Goepper said. “It’s about figuring out how to do new things and how to develop new formats and courses, but at the same time not taking athletes too far away from what they’ve been trained to do. I have nothing but confidence and excitement for the future of these leagues in the next few years.”

“I think they’re already doing a good job of offering it year-round,” Gerard said. “The way I see it right now is the new PGA and LIV Golf, where they’re the new LIV Golf and there’s just one year-round competition. Right now we’re so stable that (FIS) competitions are only in January and December. I like how they’re expanding it.”

The Snow League is scheduled to launch in early 2025, and the X Games League is scheduled to debut in 2026.