American rider Jordy Scott won her second gold of Crankworx Rotorua on Saturday night in the Pump Track. Photo / Kike Abelleira, Crankworx
American rider Jordy Scott won her second gold of Crankworx Rotorua on Saturday night in the Pump Track. Photo / Kike Abelleira, Crankworx
In her first year on the full Crankworx World Tour Jordy Scott is making her mark.
The American rider was two golds deep after Saturday night - winning the inaugural CLIF Speed and Style on Friday night before backing it up with another gold at the RockShox Rotorua Pump TrackChallenge the next night.
"I'm really happy," Scott said at the weekend.
"This has been the one event that I've done for the past four years. I pushed to get in the big finals last year and then couldn't make it happen, so I'm really happy I made it happen this year."
That was the Pump Track finals in Whistler last summer. She was up against Jill Kintner (USA), with Kintner taking the win. The weekend's event was a bit of a redemption for Scott.
He sad the momentum that built round after round pushed him to the top.
"Before, I wasn't really digging the track, so to come out with a win... I can't believe it."
Also in disbelief over the win were those watching the action unfold. Zula was matched up in the final round with his teammate and friend Collin Hudson (USA). Both were dressed in a black kit with a red helmet. Hudson took the win on the Whistler Pump Track in 2018, while Zula took 2019.
And the similarities didn't end there. Their first matchup in the final round was a draw, their times so close that "winner" appeared underneath both their names on the scoreboard. In the all-or-nothing round, a mere 0.01 seconds separated the two of them, Zula taking the win by a hair.
Emil Johansson's flowy and trick-heavy ride was enough to win the Maxxis Slopestyle in Memory of McGazza at Crankworx Rotorua. Photo / Kike Abelleira, Crankworx
Rotorua's Keegan Wright finished the pump track in fifth place, while fellow local Tuhoto-Ariki Pene finished eighth. Rotorua-based Tauranga woman, Shania Rawson finished the women's event in fourth place.
Meanwhile, in the Maxxis Slopestyle in Memory of McGazza, Emil Johansson's flowy and trick-heavy ride was more than enough to secure a score of 96 and win the men's event.
The 20-year-old, who pulled out two tricks "new out of my pocket" - a 360 windshield wiper and a switch triple-whip - says he loves riding and understands the danger of the sport.
"For me, when it comes to riding, I just enjoy what I do and I take it serious when it comes to preparation for an event such as this with such a high risk," Johansson says.
The Swedish rider said his focus at this stage in his riding and life is on keeping progression going and having fun on bikes.
It's something the young rider has certainly earned. In 2017, his star was undeniably on the rise. That year, his first on the Crankworx World Tour, he earned three podiums, starting off with a third place in Rotorua and ending with a second place at Red Bull Joyride.
Then everything changed. An auto-immune disease struck, taking Johansson down, to a point where he wasn't sure if he'd recover, or ever be able to ride competitively again.
Eventually, a diagnosis came, followed by an uncertain road back. June of 2019 he returned to Crankworx competition in Innsbruck with a bang, coming in second. The fairytale continued with a win in Whistler.
In second was American rider Nicholi Rogatkin (USA) had an uncharacteristic 2019. After becoming the very first rider in history to win the Triple Crown of Slopestyle, the American seemed unable to find his flow. His top finish was fourth.
"Last year I had some very unlucky moments here, and the whole season didn't really go my way, so I'm really stoked to get some redemption and get back up on the podium here in Rotorua," said the 24-year-old.
"It's one of my favourite places. The first ever place I won a Crankworx event. It honestly feels amazing. I'm so stoked."
Rogatkin's podium finish today was hard fought. He seemed on his game on his first run, but his attempted front flip tailwhip on the McGazza money booter ended in an explosion of dust in the finish corral. He fared better on his second, scoring a 93, enough to bump Fedko into third - his third, third place podium at Crankworx, the other two coming in Les Gets and Whistler in 2018.
"Getting the run down was insane," said the 21-year-old. "I was so happy I couldn't believe it."
The scores start the 2020 Crankworx FMBA Slopestyle World Championship (SWC) season, which will see riders meet again at Crankworx Innsbruck in June, and finish things off at the 10th anniversary Red Bull Joyride at Crankworx Whistler.
Additionally, Johansson sets himself up as the only rider eligible in 2020 to win the elusive Triple Crown of Slopestyle prize, on offer to any rider who can win all SWC contests in a season.
Maxxis Slopestyle in Memory of McGazza results: Emil JOHANSSON 96. Nicholi ROGATKIN 93. Erik FEDKO 90.25. Tomas LEMOINE 88.25. Jakub VENCL 85. Thomas GENON 81.50. Lucas HUPPERT 78.50. Alex ALANKO 77. Lukas KNOPF 76.25. Timothé BRINGER 75.75. Owen MARKS 72.25. Anthony MESSERE 71.25. Dawid GODZIEK 30.
