Dan Wakeham.

The third day of the BRITS saw some explosive action from all age categories in the SNO!zone Snowboard Halfpipe Championships but the podium spots ultimately went to Team GB riders, Kate Foster and Jamie Nicholls, with Nicholls throwing down a super clean run that featured a backside 9 – a trick he learned in practise today.

Conditions held well throughout the day meaning the pipe stayed in great condition throughout. In the women’s finals, Kate Foster, who qualified in first position following her consistently strong runs in the qualifiers, set the standard and walked away with the gold and the 2010 SNO!zone British Halfpipe Championship Title. Her winning run included a huge frontside air to backside mute, a smooth frontside 360, to cab 360, frontside 360 and stylish stalefish. Stefani Nurding took second place with a selection of big front and backside airs and back to back 360’s, whilst third place went to Ivy Taylor who nailed a smooth and solid run.

Kate Foster quoted: “I just tried to get a bit of amplitude today. I love the Brits it’s been a great week and I’m really happy I just got a gold medal.”

Kate Foster.

Strong performances from several of the youngsters saw Lewis Courtier-Jones from the kid’s age category and Cody Hierons, Jamie Nicholls and Henry Shackleton from the youth age category make it through to the top 12 men final, giving them the chance to compete with the big guns – an experience an event like the BRITS can only create.

The men’s final was an exciting performance showcasing how international the standard is amongst the British men. Jamie Nicholls proved his riding skills to be world class and his ability to learn new tricks phenomenal in the men’s final when he threw down a super clean run, including a big backside 900 – a trick he’d only learned during practice. Jamie’s run which included a massive frontside air, backside 900 and back to back 7’s clinched him the gold and the 2010 SNO!zone British Halfpipe Championship Title.

Men's podium.

Second place went to Dom Harington, who qualified through to the final in top spot. Dom’s run, was technical, stylish and consistently big and included a backside 900, frontside 720, Haakon flip and backside rodeo. Sam Cullum, riding just three months after shattering his pelvis, impressively finished in third after he landed a smooth and clean run.

Jamie Nicholls said: “I wasn’t going to compete but I rode the pipe in practice and it felt pretty good I thought I might as well give it a shot. I learnt that run today which was pretty funny – because I never thought I’d be able to do that in the pipe cause I don’t really ride the pipe. I was wearing Ben Kilner’s Olympic jacket so I think that’s where the luck came from.”

Women's podium.

SNO!zone British Halfpipe Championship Results
Men                                           Women
1st – Jamie Nicholls            1st – Kate Foster
2nd – Dom Harrington       2nd –Stefani Nurding
3rd – Sam Cullum                 3rd – Ivy Taylor

Don’t forget to check out the BRITS 2010 daily webcasts at www.brits10.com, where you will be able to review the Snowboard and Freeski action and après from the previous day’s competition.