Super Cooper makes history at US Selections
Published Sat 22 Dec 2018
Cooper Woods-Topalovic has become the first Australian male moguls skier to win gold at a US Freestyle Selections event in Winter Park, USA.
On day one in a hotly contested event littered with some of America’s most talented skiers, Cooper consistently improved with each run. Slowly moving his way through the field to perform when it counted.
The 18-year-old qualified eighth fastest and finished fourth in the first round of finals to then shave 0.93 seconds off his previous run and take top spot.
Cooper then backed up his first effort with a silver medal on day two which also included a fourth-place to fellow Aussie Claudia Gueli in the women’s competition.
He is no stranger to performing in big events after an injury to Brodie Summers paved the way for him to travel with the national team during the 2017/2018 FIS Freestyle World Cup season.
On the World Cup tour, Cooper’s best result came with a top 30 finish in Thaiwoo, China, helping contribute to the talented skier’s development.
From his home slopes of Perisher to Winter Park, Cooper’s success came as part of the New South Wales Institute of Sport (NSWIS) team’s North America tour.
Travelling with the NSWIS team, Cooper’s experienced coaching team of Kate Blamey and Peter McNeil have guided the young skier to this result.
The NSWIS team left for North America in early December and based themselves at Apex Mountain (Canada) for approximately three weeks before relocating to Winter Park, where they will remain until late January for training.
Cooper is one of nine in a NSWIS team which includes Claudia Gueli, Maddison Everingham, Sophie Ash, Emma Bosco, Benjamin Matsumoto, Ethan Topalovic, Chester Burns and Tom Van Dongen.
To view all Australian results from Winter Park – click here.
To view Cooper Woods-Topalovic’s FIS profile – click here.