After topping the podium at the inaugural Snow League event in Aspen Snowmass, Yuto Totsuka looks to carry his winning momentum into Event Two at Yunding Snow Park, China.
Japan swept the podium at Event One in Aspen Snowmass, with the top three ranked men’s snowboarders entering the competition and landing in the top three spots—though not in the same order. Ranked third coming in behind teammates Ruka Hirano (the 2025 World Snowboard points leader) and Olympic Champion Ayumu Hirano, Yuto Totsuka seized the advantage offered by the League’s new head-to-head format and the unique requirement that athletes drop in from both sides of the halfpipe.
Totsuka’s Path to Victory
Totsuka didn’t just claim the winning run—he earned the three highest scores of the entire competition. In a finals showdown where all three podium finishers landed triple cork 1440s, Totsuka set himself apart, earning the top score of 96.50 over Ruka Hirano—not with a triple cork, but with flawless execution, massive amplitude, and technical mastery spinning all four directions.
With his Event One victory, Totsuka now leads The Snow League World Championship Standings heading into Event Two at Yunding Snow Park, China, December 4–6, 2025. The pressure is on—but if Aspen was any indication, he’s more than ready.
Here’s how it all went down at Aspen Snowmass.
Day One Qualifiers: The field of 20 narrows to eight
The opening round at Aspen Snowmass set the tone for an unforgettable first event. Twenty men were split into four heats based on rankings, each given two runs to earn a direct ticket to Finals Day. Heat winners advanced automatically, while the rest had to battle through the Last Chance Qualifier.
Totsuka claimed the top spot in Heat 3 with an 81, securing his place in Saturday’s quarterfinals. But it was Ayumu Hirano who stole the show in Heat 2, dropping an 88.25, the highest score of the day, to earn a five-point bonus and establish himself as the athlete to beat. Ruka Hirano and Alessandro Barbieri (USA) also topped their heats, while Chaeun Lee (KOR), Shuichiro Shigeno (JPN), Ryusei Yamada (JPN), and Chase Blackwell (USA) kept their championship hopes alive through the Last Chance Qualifier.
Finals Day: Strategy Meets Head-To-Head Showdown
When Finals Day arrived, the Snow League’s new format took center stage. Athletes faced off in best two-of-three head-to-head battles, with a crucial twist: they had to drop in on both walls in their first two runs or risk disqualification. Safe “stock runs” were no longer an option—every drop demanded strategy, progression, and variety. The result? A lot of drama and some of the season’s most insane halfpipe snowboarding action.
The morning started off with the quarterfinals, where Totsuka squared off against fellow Japanese athlete Shigeno. While Shigeno struggled to find his rhythm, Totsuka made an immediate statement with a crowd, and announcer, favorite: a switch backside alley-oop rodeo nosegrab launched fifteen-plus feet out of the pipe, flowing seamlessly into a trio of double corks. Although his amplitude was briefly eclipsed by Ayumu Hirano’s 16 1⁄2-foot frontside double cork in a separate quarterfinal against Chaeun Lee, Totsuka would push higher later in the day. He capped the round with a 90.75 on his second run, advancing to the semifinals and signaling he was only just getting started.
Semifinal Showdown That Could’ve Been a Final: Yuto Totsuka vs. Ayumu Hirano
The semifinals brought together the top three ranked athletes heading into Aspen Snowmass, plus rising American Alessandro Barbieri. All eyes were on number-one seed Ayumu Hirano, squaring off against third-ranked Totsuka—a dream matchup, both seasoned contest veterans, both hitting massive amplitude and bringing a full arsenal of tricks.
Totsuka came out charging. The regular-footed snowboarder dropped in switch on the right side, dialing up the difficulty from quarterfinals on his last two hits with a frontside double cork 1440 indy, finishing with a switch frontside 1080 truck driver—offering up a big variety of spin directions and heroic amplitude, and the judges rewarded the effort with a 94.50—the highest score of the competition to that point.
Hirano fired back. The goofy-footer also dropped from the right side, going all in with his Olympic gold medal-winning frontside triple cork 1440 truck driver—the first triple cork 1440 of the competition—into a switch frontside double cork 1440 indy hitting sixteen feet of amplitude. He kept the intensity going with a frontside double cork 1260 indy, a backside 900 Weddle, and a frontside double cork 1080 truck driver. His score of 92.25 was shy of Totsuka’s 94.50, giving Totsuka the first-run win in one of the day’s most memorable matchups.
A more muted run two saw Totsuka edge out Ayumu 83 to 78.75 avoiding a third-run tiebreaker and sealing his spot in the finals.
Ayumu was relegated to the third-place matchup against Barbieri, who delivered a career-best run. But it was not enough to beat the Olympic champion who outscored Barbieri’s 88.25 with a 91. Even in defeat, Barbieri was ecstatic: “Just landing that run was enough for me to throw everything [he tossed his helmet and snowboard in excitement]. Even if I didn’t win the round, I was still buzzing from it.”
The Final Showdown: Ruka Hirano vs Yuto Totsuka
Top-seeded Ruka Hirano entered The Snow League atop the World Cup rankings, marking his third consecutive season at the summit. He and Totsuka had recently clashed in a World Cup, where Totsuka had to settle for second behind Hirano in the open finals format. But The Snow League head-to-head format was set to test them in a whole new way.
Men’s Finals Day Bracket
Both regular footed riders dropped in from the right wall to start. Totsuka dropped first, setting a new benchmark with a flawless switch backside alley-oop rodeo nosegrab launched 17 feet above the lip. He carried the momentum down the halfpipe, linking up a switch backside double cork 1080 Weddle, a backside 900 Weddle, setting himself up for a massive finish: a perfectly executed frontside triple cork 1440 indy, his first of this competition. The score would wait until Ruka’s run. And all eyes returned to the top of the halfpipe.
Ruka dropped in, firing back with a Cab triple cork 1440 truck driver nearly fifteen feet out. He flowed into a frontside double cork 1260 indy, a floaty air-to-fakie, then linked up a switch backside double cork 1080 and a backside 900 Weddle. The judges had their work cut out for them, but when the scores dropped, Totsuka’s 95 edged out Ruka’s 91 in a thrilling triple-cork showdown.
Back at the top for run two, both riders dropped in on the left wall, and this is where head-to-head strategy came into sharp focus. Totsuka, opting not to rely on his triple cork 1440, dialed up the difficulty in a calculated move linking twelves and fourteens in all four directions (frontside, backside, switch frontside, and switch backside), while maintaining a minimum of 13 feet of amplitude. If this were poker, Totsuka had just laid down a full house.
Hirano had his counter-strategy ready, aiming to land back-to-back 1440s. He stomped a frontside double cork 1440 indy off the first hit, then launched into a frontside triple cork 1440 indy—but just missed the landing. And with that, Totsuka sealed the win, leaving Ruka Hirano and Ayumu Hirano to round out the podium in second and third. The trio now leads the Snow League World Championship Standings heading into Event Two.
Totsuka took home $55,000 in prize money and 100 points as the top-ranked athlete heading into event two at Yunding Snow Park in China set for December 4–6, 2025.
The Snow League Points Leader, Yuto Totsuka, in his own words:
After having time to reflect and bask in his Aspen Snowmass victory, Totsuka chatted with The Snow League about his win. We pointed out that en route to winning the event, he earned the three highest scores of the entire weekend and launched the highest air at 17 feet in finals. We asked what led to this level of dominance? Totsuka said he believes that his strength is “being able to incorporate rotations in all directions and mix in triple corks.”
While his final winning run didn’t have a triple cork, he explained, “I considered adding a triple cork at the end, but I didn’t have enough space to do it, so I decided to go for a double 1440 instead.” An on-the-fly choice that led to the top of the podium.
Looking ahead to Event Two in China, Totsuka said that his riding and his win at The Snow League Event One have, “boosted my confidence and I want to show the next level of my riding in China.”
Totsuka celebrated his Aspen win with a team dinner along with women’s winner Sena Tomita and second place finisher Ruka Hirano.
