Freeskiers filming the new milennium look in Generations of Freeskiing
© Klaus Polzer
Freeskiing
Revisit history with Generations of Freeskiing
Enjoy this freeski spoof, featuring the big names of the scene recreating the history of the sport.
By Julius Hollander
3 min readPublished on
5 minGenerations of FreeskiingGenerations of Freeskiing
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From hot-dogging to ski ballet, to today's slopestyle and urban tricks, the 30-minute documentary, Generations of Freeskiing, looks back on some legendary moments from freeski history – with plenty of wit and a keen eye for the fine details.
Ski stars like Lisa Zimmermann, Viktoria Rebensburg, Bene Mayr, Jon Olsson, Henrik Windstedt and Jesper Tjäder pay homage to the key eras of freeskiing. They honour the heroes who pushed the boundaries of the sport with their desire for freedom.
Check out the highlights from three decades of freeskiing in the player above.
Packed with footage from almost 50 years of freeskiing history, the full film retraces the key periods from the sport's past – with original equipment and clothing, from tight overalls and jackets in bright neon colours to oversized XXXL shirts.
The 1976 skiing scene recreated in Generations of Freeskiing
Generations of Freeskiing: 1976© Klaus Polzer
From mogul skiing to the slopes: ski ballet was pure creativity on skis. Dancers on snow preferred having fun and using their imagination to sticking to the rulebook. Here, German slopestyle world champion Lisa Zimmermann, a former figure skater, shows off her gracious pirouettes on the slope.
1979 gets the Generations of Freeskiing treatment
Generations of Freeskiing: 1979© Klaus Polzer
In the late '80s skiing became more extreme and conquered the steep terrain – especially American skier Scot Schmidt. Freeride star Henrik Windstedt of Sweden was happy to take on this role, and even happier to dig out the era's neon clothes from his own basement. The characteristic Schmidt turns – hop turns on steep slopes – and radical jumps in the backcountry define his performance.
The neon ski fashions of 1990 make an appearance in Generations of Freeskiing
Generations of Freeskiing: 1990© Klaus Polzer
Beginning at the turn of the millennium, the new-school movement pushed freeskiing forward. During the 2003 backcountry jump session, Fabio Studer of Austria and Germany's Bene Mayr showcase tricks from that era, such as the Cork 360 and the Flatspin 360 Japan.
Later, huge snowparks were established in the ski resorts. Swedish freestyle legend Jon Olsson, who back then brought the first double corks to the snow parks, acted as the advisor for this segment. Three-time X Games winner Nick Goepper of the USA performs spectacular jumps from the modern age of freeskiing.
And if you're making a film about freeskiing, you can't leave out the daring tricks on rails and stairs that dominate urban skiing. Representing this style is Swedish jibbing specialist Jesper Tjäder, who shows some creative moves at the new 3S Eisgratbahn at the Stubai Glacier.
Want more? Listen to the perfect sonic accompaniment on the official playlist:
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Part of this story

Jesper Tjäder

A freeski star from Sweden, Jesper Tjäder has been making appearances on podiums for years now and looks on course to continue this success.

SwedenSweden

Jon Olsson

An elite freestyle skier who loves catching big air, Sweden's Jon Olsson is also the inventor of the Kangaroo Flip manoeuvre.

SwedenSweden
Freeskiing
Skiing