French freerider Victor de Le Rue started off this season with the premiere of one of the best video parts of the year. After today, he's added the fourth Freeride World Tour championship to his list of accomplishments.
de Le Rue took third place at the FWT's final stop of the year in Verbier, Switzerland to hold off British rider Cody Bramwell for the season-long crown. Bramwell won Thursday's event at Verbier, but fell 1,280 points short of de Le Rue for the title. He finished in second place on the season, and Swiss rider Liam Rivera came in third.
Americans Holden Samuels and Michael Mawn finished in sixth and seventh place, respectively.
De Le Rue threw a frontside 360 and a tame dog on his way to scoring an 89 on the day. The title is the fourth of his career, surpassing his brother Xavier de Le Rue's three titles, and tying Marion Haerty's all-time record.
"I am incredibly happy to make history with this title," de Le Rue said. "It was a goal from the start of the season, but the competition was tough, and conditions were challenging. It all came down to the final run, and I am grateful for how everything played out."
Bramwell's run was almost flawless. He launched a backflip in the steep upper section of the Bec des Rosses, and threw a 360 and another backflip to bring home a score of 92.67 and take his second win of the season.
"Winning the Xtreme Verbier is a dream come true. It's such a legendary competition that it still doesn't feel real," Bramwell said. "I had almost counted myself out, thinking about next year, but somehow I finished second overall. I'm still pinching myself."
Photo: Freeride World Tour
On the women's side, Noémie Equy kept up her dominant rookie season with another top finish. She already clinched the season-long crown a week before. It was a historical season, as she won four of the six events on the year.
"Winning the title and the Xtreme Verbier in my rookie season is more than I could have ever expected," she said. "I am really happy with how everything turned out, and now I am looking forward to celebrating and working on getting even better for next winter."
Michaela Davis-Meehan took home second place both in the Verbier contest and on the season overall. Castán Barón did the same to clinch third place. She podiumed three times after narrowly qualifying for the FWT finals.
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