The Freeride World Tour has scored some serious points this year in terms of attracting star talent to its roster. Skier Tanner Hall will compete on a year-long wildcard and today, the Tour announced that Travis Rice is set to compete in the Japan event at Hakuba.
Rice wowed the internet with his win at a 2017 Qualifying stop in Japan (above). “Really looking forward to competing in Hakuba this January with the best line-up of riders to date and an event venue that provides endless opportunity for expression,” Rice said in a FWT release. “Honored to get a wild card, as for me, it’s the perfect way to kick the real winter season off in a place that leaves any freerider wide-eyed and inspired. Most places we say, ‘pray for snow.’ (In Japan) we will pray for sun.”
As Rice mentioned, he’ll be competing against a talented field, including three-time world champ Sammy Luebke. The event window for Hakuba–the FWT’s first stop of the season–is January 19-26, 2019.