Fifteen years ago, an 11-year-old named Chris Lillis did had his first backflip on a water ramp in Lake Placid. At that moment, a future gold medalist discovered his passion for aerials.
Today, with the FIS Freestyle World Cup Aerials officially scheduled to return to the Olympic Village on January 18 and 19 for the first time since 2019, Chris and many others who began their careers and trained in Lake Placid are looking forward to a homecoming.
“We trained here for a very long time. It’s a great place. A historical place. The center for aerials really. I believe our athletes and coaches are all happy to be back,” said U.S. Aerials Coach Vladimir Lebedev before last year’s North American Cup freestyle competition at Lake Placid’s Olympic Jumping Complex. This venue, Lake Placid itself, and the local U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Training Center are seen as greatly important to the freestyle community as among the few major development sites in the country.
The 2024-25 season is beginning soon, and it will be one of the most highly anticipated freestyle World Cup seasons ever for U.S. athletes and fans. For the first time since 1997, three FIS Freestyle World Cups will take place on home snow, beginning with a Lake Placid World Cup that includes the first-ever mixed aerials team event in the United States.
The other World Cup freestyle events in the U.S. include a freestyle moguls competition at Waterville Valley, New Hampshire, on January 24 and 25 and a moguls and aerials competition on February 6 through 8 in Deer Valley, Utah. For the full FIS freestyle season calendar, visit this link.
This season promises to be unforgettable and awe-inspiring with fresh new talent, seasoned veterans, and a host of elite athletes in their prime, all chasing World Cup crystal globes. The result will be a high-flying spectacle of athleticism and precision.
Join Chris Lillis and the entire U.S. Team at their homecoming in Lake Placid this January and see their gravity-defying performances on home snow. Details for the Lake Placid World Cup freestyle aerials competition are available here, and tickets will go on sale soon.