SNOWBOARDING:

Seb Toots rules big-air in Quebec City

Feb. 19, 2011 — Canada Snowboard     ♦ Video by Infront Sports & Media/FIS

QUEBEC CITY, Quebec ― Canadian snowboarders delivered a 1-2 punch under the bright Saturday night lights in downtown Quebec City at the last big-air contest on the 2011 LG Snowboard FIS World Cup Tour.

Local star Sebastien Toutant of L’Assomption, Que., known as Seb Toots in the snowboard industry, took home first place despite nursing a rib injury, while Matts Kulisek of Montreal took second.

Toutant took the victory in the Jamboree big air presented by Amnesia/Arsenic by smoothly dropping down his very own trick, the “Tootsie Roll,” in his third and final jump to amass 56.1 points. The Tootsie Roll is a backside 1080 double-cork. 

“ I was supposed to be in Norway for another contest. I injured myself in Austria while training and came back to Canada to receive treatments. My physio told me it would be a good test to take part in this contest.”

“It’s really nice to come here and win the discipline. Having a ramp in an urban setting is really different than a contest on a mountain. There is a lot less time to get ready, but what a show!”

Toutant has had a great season to date, winning two World Cup big-air contests as well as the 6-star TTR Big Air in Beijing, China. In slopestyle, the rising star won X Games gold as well as a 6-star TTR in Davos, Switzerland.

The big-air event in Québec City, which took place on a manmade structure, was the last one scheduled on the 2011 World Cup calendar. Toots, who won two of the four events, is leading the way but has not secured the coveted crystal globe, as it is awarded to the winner of both big-air and slopestyle events combined. There are two World Cup slopestyle events scheduled on the 2011 calendar.

Kulisek scored 51.0 points to secure second. Kulisek laid down a huge frontside 1080 and a switch backside 900.

Kulisek is also no stranger to international success. Last year at the Jamboree, Kulisek jumped for the first time in a World Cup contest and finished seventh. Since then, he has taken part in all of the big-airs on the World Cup schedule. Last June, Kulisek finished second at the 5-star TTR Billabong Ante Up in Whistler, B.C.

Stefan Falkeis of Austria finished third with a score of 50.6 points.

In total, six Canadians made it through the 12-man finals. Jordan Philips finished seventh, followed by Julien Beaulieu in eighth, Tanner Davidson in ninth and Alexandre Leblanc in 12th.

Canada now has 12 medals on the FIS World Cup tour this season, with four of them in big-air.

The 2011 LG Snowboard FIS World Cup in Stoneham ends Sunday with the parallel giant slalom races.

Quebec City World Cup men's snowboard big-air results