The annual Winter X Games returns to Aspen this weekend. As there is every year, there’s a countless amount of athletes who will be surging over powder and half pipes. The three-day event can be daunting. So let’s make it easy.
Below are 16 hand-picked athletes who won’t only have a great chance to put on the most impressive performances, but who also have good reason for you to cheer them on.
And no, there’s no Shaun White this year. The Flying Tomato is out. Here’s who’s in… You’ll notice I use the term “bad ass” a lot …
X Games Aspen is January 28-31 and can be watched on ESPN and ABC.
Josh Helmuth is the editor of Crave Sports. Follow him on Twitter or like the channel on Facebook.
Photo: Getty
17 Athletes X Games Aspen
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Chloe Kim
(Torrance, Calif.)
Women’s Snowboard SuperPipe
The "future of snowboarding" was the youngest to win gold in any winter event and won her first silver at age 13 three years ago. SILVER! AGE 13!! ... When I was 13 I was thrilled to take bronze playing 'MarioKart 64.' ... Gotta root for the kids.
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Cody Field
(Centennial, Colo.)
Special Olympics Unified Snowboarding
Another 'kid' to root for is 23-year old Field. There's little information on the "Flying Spartan," other than the fact he's been a badass for a decade. But just watch this Denver News piece on him and he's instantly likable ... For the second year in a row, ten Special Olympics athletes will be paired with an invited athlete from another snowboard discipline to compete in a dual giant slalom race, Field being one of the participants.
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Colten Moore
(Krum, Texas)
Snowmobile Freestyle
Moore is hoping to add his third Snowmobile Freestyle gold as the discipline returns to X Games this year after a one-year hiatus. X Games removed the event after Moore's brother, Caleb, was killed from injuries sustained in a violent crash in the competition just three years ago.
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Danny Davis
(Highland, Michigan)
Men’s Snowboard SuperPipe
The SuperPipe champ is attempting to three-peat this year after sustaining major injuries in 2010 and 2012 that were nearly career-ending. He's a rider always looking to add new style and innovation in his runs. If anyone will attempt something never-seen-before, it's Davis.
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Gus Kenworthy
(Telluride, Colo.)
Ski SuperPipe, Big Air, Slopestyle
An Olympic silver medal? Check. Four consecutive AFP rank titles? Check. Out of the closet? Check ... One of the biggest gay athletes currently competing in any sport, Kenworthy is a social media star who will make major waves if he finds more success at X Games Aspen.
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Jamie Anderson
(South Lake Tahoe, Calif.)
Snowboard Slopestyle
She's the most decorated woman in slopestyle, owning ten X Games medals to her name. She gives back to the community in tremendous ways, has an Olympic medal and has an impressive body. Sorry, Jamie, that last fact had to be mentioned. Thanks ESPN.
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Keith Gabel
(Ogden, Utah)
Adaptive snowboarding
The Paralympian started snowboarding as a kid but lost his foot and lower leg in an industrial accident in 2005. His determination since the accident has inspired several others as Gabel hasn't been just one of the best in his discipline, but also secured a bronze medal in Sochi.
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Levi LaVallee
(Longville, Minn)
Snowmobile (everything)
LaVallee has 10 X Games medals, seven of them gold. He's also considered one of the most versatile snowmobiler in X Games history, earning medals from six different snowmobile disciplines.
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Lindsey Jacobellis
(Stratton, Vt.)
Women’s Snowboarder X
She's a three-time Olympian who has also been the most dominant snowboard cross rider ever. Jacobellis has more gold medals in X Games than any other female in history, nine in Snowboarder X.
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Maddie Bowman
(South Lake Tahoe, Calif.)
Ski SuperPipe
Bowman snatched SuperPipe/halfpipe gold at both X Games Aspen and the Winter Olympics in '14 and topped the AFP halfpipe rankings for the second straight year. She was also nominated for Best Female Action Sports Athlete and Best Female Olympian at the ESPYs, all while having torn cartilage in her left knee. She's a bad ass.
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Mark McMorris
(Saskatchewan, Canada)
Snowboard Slopestyle, Snowboard Big Air
The Canadian is a five-time X Games gold medalist with nine medals overall and won golds in both Big Air and Slopestyle at last year's X Games Aspen. He also landed the first frontside triple cork 1440 to backside triple cork 1440 in competition in the Slopestyle event at the 2015 Burton US Open. I have no idea what that move is, but anything that has "triple" followed by "backside" has to be hard, right?
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Mike Schultz
(St. Cloud, Minn.)
SnoCross Adaptive
Schultz has seven total X Games medals but was the first athlete to win gold in different sports in both the winter and summer X Games. To make it more impressive, he won four consecutive SnoCross Adaptive gold medals in Aspen and Moto X Racing Adaptive golds from 2010-13. He's also a good guy, founding BioDapt, which manufactures artificial knees and feet compatible with amputees’ active lifestyles.
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Nick Goepper
(Lawrenceburg, Indiana)
Ski Slopestyle
The dude isn't just the most dominant slopestyle skier in more than a decade, he's from Indiana. Friggin' INDIANA. The HOOSIER state. God bless any kid who can be that much of a badass on the slopes where all people care about his shooting pigskin off a backboard.
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Silje Norendal
(Oslo, Norway)
Women’s Snowboard Slopestyle
So Silje began snowboarding at age four and was competing by age six. OF COURSE she was. She's Norwegian. But she's a badass as well. A three-time defending X Games Snowboard Slopestyle gold medalist.
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Stale Sandbech
(Rykkinn, Norway)
Snowboard Slopestyle, Snowboard Big Air
The 22-year-old is a four-time X Games medalist who earned double-bronze medals in Slopestyle and Big Air in 2014 and then swiped a silver medal at X Games '15. We just like his name. Pronounced 'Stah-lay'??
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Tucker Hibbert
(Pelican Rapids, Minn.)
SnoCross
Arguably currently the best male action sports athlete, Hibbert is the most dominant SnoCross rider EVER ... 108 wins in 185 starts and is now looking to claim the first ever nine-peat in X Games winter event history.
