The reigning World Champion topped qualification from his heat and wasted no time making his mark in run one, delivering a near-flawless top-to-bottom performance to take the early lead.
With several athletes unable to put down clean first runs, the intensity ramped up for the second run of finals where the United States’ Nick Goepper responded with a highly technical run, posting a new leading score of 94.80 to apply pressure heading into the final few drops.
Melville Ives looked to respond, where he landed a switch left double corked 1440 safety grab, but ultimately, he fell short.
Fellow Kiwi Ben Harrington also impressed in the same event, making the finals and securing his best result of the season with an eighth-place finish.
Meanwhile, Alice Robinson has struggled in the latest giant slalom race at the FIS Ski World Cup event in Kranjska Gora, Slovenia.
Robinson failed to complete her opening run, which saw her slip to third in the standings, and left her feeling “frustrated”.
“Didn’t have the right feels from the get- go,” Robinson wrote on Instagram.
”This is how our sport rolls and I’ll use this fire for the next races going forward. Thank you for the support. We charge on.”