The Freeride World Tour is returning to Utah for the first time since 2014, with Snowbird Resort set to host the first of two finals in the Tour's 2027 season.
Snowbird, the Freeride World Tour (FWT) and Park City-based U.S. Ski & Snowboard announced Thursday, Oct. 29, that the YETI Snowbird Pro presented by Stifel will take place on Mount Baldy.
The competition is scheduled for March 16–17, with a weather window extending through March 22 to accommodate mountain conditions.
Spectators will be able to watch from the base of Baldy. Organizers also anticipate music and other activities at the resort.
Freeride prepares for its Olympic debut
The announcement comes as freeride skiing and snowboarding prepare to enter the Winter Olympics.
In July, the International Olympic Committee approved freeride events for the 2030 French Alps Games.
Men and women will compete in skiing and snowboarding events on natural mountain terrain, where riders select their routes down steep, ungroomed slopes.
Utah will host the Winter Olympics in 2034, but freeride's inclusion in those Games has not been confirmed, and no Utah Olympic venue has been assigned to the discipline.
The current Utah 2034 venue plan places halfpipe and slopestyle at Park City Mountain, moguls and aerials at Deer Valley, and alpine skiing at Snowbasin.
How the 2027 Tour works
The Freeride World Tour's 20th-season calendar includes 53 riders competing across six stops.
Four regular-season events in Spain, France, Georgia and Austria will determine who qualifies for the finals.
Each athlete's best three results count toward qualification. After the fourth stop at Fieberbrunn, Austria, only the top 60% of competitors will advance.
Snowbird will host the first final before the Tour moves to Verbier, Switzerland, where four season champions will be crowned.
The 2027 calendar is:
- Baqueira Beret Pro, Spain: Jan. 16–17
- Val Thorens Pro, France: Jan. 25–26
- Georgia Pro, Mestia: Feb. 20–21
- Fieberbrunn Pro, Austria: March 3–9
- YETI Snowbird Pro, Utah: March 16–17, with a weather window through March 22
- YETI Xtreme Verbier, Switzerland: March 27–28, with a weather window through April 4
Snowbird's freeride history
Snowbird last hosted a Freeride World Tour stop in 2014, but its history with freeride competitions dates to 1998.
The resort regularly hosts International Free Skiers Association competitions, some of which serve as qualifiers for the Tour.
Three members of Snowbird's athlete team are current FWT competitors: skiers Ross Tester and Hannah Baldwin and snowboarder Holden Samuels.
Mount Baldy's steep, technical terrain will provide the setting for the March final, with competitors choosing their own lines through natural features.
Snowbird President and General Manager Dave Fields said the resort's history of developing freeride athletes makes the event a fitting return.
Park City organization helps bring Tour back
U.S. Ski & Snowboard, headquartered in Park City, is co-presenting the Snowbird final as it expands its involvement in freeride.
The organization added freeride skiing and snowboarding as official disciplines in 2026 and established its first Stifel U.S. Freeride Team for the 2026–27 season.
U.S. Ski & Snowboard President and CEO Sophie Goldschmidt described 2026 as an important year for the sport, connecting the new national team and Snowbird event to freeride's upcoming Olympic debut.
FWT founder and CEO Nicolas Hale-Woods said Snowbird's terrain, community and event experience made the resort an important destination for the returning Tour.
The organizations said additional information about the competition schedule, participating athletes and spectator arrangements will be released closer to March.
