UK’s snowboarding and free skiing championships heading to Cairngorms

By Mike Merritt

February 5 2023, 1:36 pm

Winter Olympian Kirsty Muir is among those expected to take part in The Brits at The Cairngorm Mountain. Image: Wullie Marr/ DC Thomson.

A prestigious winter sports national championships is returning to the Cairngorms for the first time in over 30 years.

Some of the biggest names in GB snowboarding will compete at the Cairngorm Mountain’s slopes when The Brits are held at the start of April.

Hundreds of established and promising athletes will take part in the Ellis Brigham British Freeski Championships and TSA British Snowboard Championships.

They will be battling it out over two days in the Olympic discipline of Slopestyle as well as for the Banked Slalom and Rail Jam titles.

Expected competitors include World Cup stars Kirsty Muir and Mia Brookes as well as Olympic veterans Billy Morgan, Jamie Nicholls and Katie Ormerod.

Great Britain’s Jamie Nicholls during the snowboard slopestyle training at the Rosa Khutor Extreme Park ahead of the start of 2014 Winter Games in Sochi. Image: Andrew Milligan/PA Wire

‘One hell of a show’

In a statement, the organisers said: “The Brits – the UK’s official snowboard and freeski championships – is back in Scotland.

“Where? Cairngorm Mountain – an early home to The Brits (after a mere 32 years have passed).

“A lot has changed over the past three decades; snowboarding is well established, free skiing has risen in parallel, and as two of the favourite disciplines of the Olympics (and with the standard of UK riding being Olympic-medal-winning) we know this is going to be one hell of a show.

“And what a venue. Cairngorm Mountain has always catered for freestyle, creating the first halfpipe back in 1991 (seven years before snowboarding debuted at the Olympics) and the Highlands proudly boasts the highest density of decorated athletes in freestyle snowsports. It’s the UK’s biggest resort and our natural home.”