"Celebration for Amateur Snowboarders by Amateur Snowboarders"
Photo: yoshitoyanagida.com
ALL JAPAN AMATURE CUP, commonly known as AM JAM, was held for the first time this season.This tournament determines the strongest amateur snowboarders, that is, riders who are not sponsored by any SHOP or brand.Who is the best amateur on the stage without any professional snowboarders is contested.And there is a dream that the brand will support this tournament.The total prize money is ¥ 600,000.Report on the tournament held in two classes, open class and beginner class.
On March 3th, at the beginning of the spring season when the snow began to melt, more than 13 amateur snowboarders gathered at the Kandatsu Kogen Ski Resort in the clear sky.The stage of this tournament is the double kicker of Kandatsu SNOW PARK for both beginner class and open class, 100m & 2m for open class and 10m & 12m for beginner class.
Five people were in charge of this judge.First, Yasuhiro Sato, the representative of the Quest group, the second is the park producer of Kandatsu Kogen Ski Resort, Re: Crew Atsushi Ishikawa, the third is Keiji Okamoto, the representative of HYWOD, and the fourth is the Girls Snowboarder as a CANDY crew. Tetsuko Kawai, who is also active, and finally Takayuki Nakamura, the style master of BREW.The eyes of the judges are severe only for the top riders who have pulled the scene. The two MCs are NAOYA, the producer who has worked on Fantasista MOVIE, and Tuyu, the representative of FORCE PARK, who has worked on numerous park productions.
The degree of attention that the application for the open class of this tournament can be filled in just one day.1 people in total for open beginners.First of all, from the beginner class.Beginner classes are from OPEN Air to 120.Both adults and kids riders are competing for low spin from straight air.Kenji Tsuboi was the most brilliant among the participants. With the reprinted version of BURTON, you can fully appeal your style such as butt tweak and seatbelt grab.In addition, there are kids who perform big skills such as 360 and 720 even though they are beginner classes.Girls class is open air and BS540.For beginner class boys, the key to the game was to assemble the routine while standing firmly on the 180.Although it was a beginner class, it was impressive that both men and girls attacked.
Men's open class is a high-level battle.First of all, 720 is essential to pass the qualifying.In addition, only riders with 720 grabs, styles and landing skills were able to make it to the finals.First of all, the girls class was asked to be able to land firmly, and in addition to that, the degree of perfection such as 180 and 360 spins was asked.It was difficult to pass the qualifying with a straight plus grab, and it was a battle that required a spin as the lowest line.
Whether to go for a win and challenge a difficult technique is the difference between the games at AM JAM. Some riders tried 900 and double cork, but they couldn't win if the landing was disturbed.Of course, it's best to do difficult tricks, but if you're too particular about it and you can't land as a result, you won't be able to win the game.It was a tournament where the bargaining seemed quite severe.The difference in power between the riders who made it to the final is very small.In fact, the winner's trick was CAB540 → FS720 for boys and FS360 → BS360 for girls.The key to the game is how you can stand with a trick that enhances the degree of perfection.
Whether you're aiming to be a rider or just want to test your strength, this tournament is a valuable place without any sponsor riders.Both of the two winners worked hard to become riders, and this tournament was a big hit, and the sponsors talked about it.
For those who are aiming to be riders, I hope that it will be a longmen tournament in the future, and that the number of such tournaments is steadily decreasing, so I would like to expect AM JAM next year as well.
Interview with the winner
Men's Open Class Winner Ko Nakamura
From this season, I attended a snowboarding vocational school and participated in various competitions.One of my goals was AM JAM, so I'm really happy to win the championship.In the final, I set up the CAB540 and FS720 routines that I had decided in the qualifying, so I went for the second one with the feeling of attacking.As a result, it is a pity that we could not make the second 2, but it is the next task.At the awards ceremony, I was saying that I would go on a trip with the prize money, but when I got it, I was starting to get lost, and now I'm thinking of using it for the cost of gear next season.I'm trying hard to become a rider now, but after the tournament, my dreams spread with the talk of the sponsor.The first tournament victory was a really happy and fun tournament.
Girls Open Class Winner Haruko Kurokawa
I'm working hard to be a rider now, and I've been to various tournaments this season.Partly because I worked at Saitama Quest during the off-season, I also entered this tournament sponsored by Saitama Quest.In the final, I decided to do what I could do, so I played with FS360 and BS360, which I refined in the off-season Saitama Quest.The BS360 in the final was the most complete in my snowboarding life in terms of distance and grab length.It was my first time to win the tournament, and when I was handed over the microphone at the awards ceremony, I trembled a little (laughs) To be honest, I was confident that the off-season gliding time was second to none, so I practiced there. I'm glad I was able to win the technique.The winning prize will buy a career for a car stay.After the tournament, I was very grateful to this tournament for the talk of one sponsor.
result
Open boys
1st place Ko Nakamura
2nd place Kyohei Hagiwara
3rd place Soto Kawakami
Open girls
1st place Haruko Kurokawa
2nd place Miyuki Koda
3rd place Yuna Tanaka
Beginner boys
1st place Shunsuke Naito
2nd place Daisho Sugisaki
3rd place Kenji Tsuboi
Beginner girls
1st place Rusana Sano
2nd place Aya Watanabe
3rd place Yuki Takuhara
3rd place Haruka Anasawa
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