Each season, freestyle snowboarders travel the world to compete in International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS) World Cup events, chasing medals, Olympic qualification, and Crystal Globes—season-long awards given to the most consistent athletes across the circuit. Over months of competition, riders battle for podium finishes and the chance to establish themselves among snowboarding’s elite. After decades of World Cup competition, only a select few riders have enough podium finishes to be considered the best.
These 10 freestyle snowboarders lead the FIS in all-time World Cup podiums.
#10: Tricia Byrnes, U.S.A – Halfpipe
During her heyday, American halfpipe snowboarder Tricia Byrnes notched 20 World Cup podiums. Hailing from Greenwich, Connecticut, the 51-year-old’s achievements include 15 World Cup victories between 1997 and 2003, and an appearance at the 2002 Olympics in Salt Lake City, where she placed sixth.
Byrnes began competing in halfpipe competitions as a teenager, winning the U.S. Open in 1992. In the mid-1990s, she was one of the few women on the slopes, but her success in competition helped open more opportunities for women in snowboarding. She helped pave the way for World Cup halfpipe events, with the first women’s snowboard halfpipe World Cup taking place during the 1995–1996 season.
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Byrnes’ first World Cup podium came one season later in 1997 at Mount Bachelor, Oregon, where she took first place. Her final podium came in 2003, with a third-place finish at a World Cup in Sapporo, Japan. She retired after the 2002-03 season.
Today, Byrnes is still active in the snowboarding community. She currently serves as the marketing manager for the United States of America Snowboard and Freeski Association (USASA), which hosts events across the country and acts as the pipeline to Olympic rosters.
#9: Ruka Hirano, Japan – Halfpipe
Japan’s Ruka Hirano, with 21 World Cup podiums, is swiftly moving up the ranks. Born in Osaka, Hirano has had continued success at the highest level with seven World Cup wins, a World Championship silver medal, and two Olympic appearances.
Perhaps the most impressive of his achievements, Hirano has won three back-to-back-to-back halfpipe Crystal Globes in the 2022-23, 2023-24, and 2024-25 seasons. Halfpipe Crystal Gloves are awarded to the athlete with the most points in the halfpipe discipline each season. With his victories, he joined Australia’s Scotty James and fellow Japanese rider Yuto Totsuka as the only riders with three men’s halfpipe Crystal Globes. Hirano stands alone as the only rider to win them in consecutive seasons.
The 24-year-old first reached the World Cup podium in 2018, finishing in second place at a World Cup in Secret Garden, China. His most recent World Cup podium also came at Secret Garden in 2026, where he took third.
At the 2026 Olympics in Milano-Cortina, Italy, Hirano narrowly missed the podium, taking fourth place overall among a stacked lineup of riders.
#9: Ross Powers, U.S.A – Halfpipe
Also with 21 World Cup podiums, American Ross Powers is among the most decorated snowboarders in U.S. history. The Vermont native, who grew up riding at Stratton Mountain, holds two Olympic medals, a World Championship gold, and nine World Cup wins.
Powers’ first Olympic appearance came in 1998 in Nagano, Japan. It was halfpipe snowboarding’s Olympic debut, and Powers walked away from that event with the bronze. Four years later, at the 2002 Olympics in Salt Lake City, Utah, Powers took gold in what would be an American podium sweep, the first since men’s figure skaters swept the podium in 1956.
Powers began competing in World Cups in 1995, with his first podium coming in San Candido, Italy, where he finished third. His final podium came in 2000 at a World Cup in Park City, Utah, where he finished second.
Following his retirement from halfpipe snowboarding, Powers moved into snowboard cross, where he also made his mark, taking third place at two World Cups. His podium finishes in snowboard cross do not count towards his podium finishes in freestyle snowboarding.
Today, the 47-year-old is the Snowboard Ambassador at Okemo Mountain Resort. He also founded the Level Field Fund, which helps bridge funding gaps for young snowboarders.
#7: Kelly Clark, U.S.A – Halfpipe
American Kelly Clark ruled the halfpipe during her time, landing 22 World Cup podiums. Her career has seen countless medals, including three from the Olympics, 14 from the X Games, and 13 World Cup wins.
Clark has been on a snowboard since she was 7 years old. She began competing in 1999 and made Team USA one year later in 2000. In her Olympic debut at the 2002 Games in Salt Lake City, Clark took the gold, becoming the first U.S. woman to take gold in Olympic halfpipe. After missing the podium at the 2006 Olympics, she made a return in 2010 in Vancouver, Canada, taking the bronze. Her final Olympic podium came in 2014 in Sochi, Russia, taking the bronze once more. Clark barely missed the podium in 2018 in PyeongChang, South Korea, placing fourth overall. Clark’s five total Olympic appearances give her, alongside Shaun White, the most of any U.S. snowboarder.
Like her Olympic career, Clark’s World Cup accolades are impressive as well. Her first World Cup podium came in 2001 in Kronplatz, Italy, where she placed third. Her first victory came later that season at a Sapporo World Cup. Her final World Cup podium came in 2017 at Copper Mountain, Colorado, with a third-place finish.
The 42-year-old announced her retirement from competitive snowboarding in 2019.
#6: Doriane Vidal, France – Halfpipe
French snowboarder Doriane Vidal was also a force in the pipe, landing on the World Cup podium 23 times. In her career, she won five World Cups, three World Championship gold medals, and one Olympic silver from the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics.
Between 2001 and 2005, Vidal won gold at three consecutive World Championships. She is the only female halfpipe snowboarder to have won three consecutive World Championships.
The 50-year-old’s first World Cup podium was a win in her home country, placing first at a 1997 World Cup in Morzine, France. Vidal’s most podium finishes in a single season came in 1998-99, with seven podiums, including one victory. Her final World Cup podium came in 2006 in Kreischberg, Austria, where she placed second.
#5: Liu Jiayu, China – Halfpipe
China’s Liu Jiayu sits fifth all-time with 24 podium finishes. Eleven of her 24 World Cup podiums are wins, and she has an Olympic silver and World Championship silver to her credit, too.
Jiayu began snowboarding in 2003 after making a change from martial arts. She was 11 years old at the time, relatively late for high-level competitive snowboarders, who typically start riding as toddlers. Jiayu made her Olympic debut in 2010, where she placed fourth in the halfpipe. She qualified for the 2014 Olympics as well, where she placed ninth. Her third time was a charm, placing second at the 2018 PyeongChang Olympics.
The 33-year-old made her first World Cup podium in 2007 in Calgary, Alberta, finishing in second place. Her first win came in 2008 in Sungwoo, South Korea.
#4: Manuela Laura Pesko, Switzerland – Halfpipe
Swiss snowboarder Manuela Laura Pesko landed 25 World Cup podiums in her career, the majority of them wins. Born in the Swiss Alp city of Chur, Pesko has won 13 World Cups and one World Championship.
The 47-year-old began her World Cup career in 2002 in Laax, Switzerland, where she took second in her first-ever World Cup. Her first win came later that year in Whistler, British Columbia.
#3: Yuto Totsuka, Japan – Halfpipe
Fresh off his 2026 Olympic gold, Japan’s Yuto Totsuka sits in third all-time with 26 World Cup podiums and is looking for more. His career has been defined by coming back from challenges and taking wins on the biggest stages, including a World Championship gold medal, an X Games gold medal, and the first-ever Snow League championship.
At the 2018 Olympics, Totsuka had one of the most brutal crashes in Olympic halfpipe history. He was 16 at the time and was stretchered off the snow. Fortunately, he escaped without any major injuries. At the 2022 Winter Olympics, Totsuka missed out on the final after a fall in qualifications. He finished 10th overall.
Totsuka finally had his Olympic moment in 2026. He battled with all-time great Scotty James and would go on to take the gold for his first Olympic medal.
At FIS World Cups, Totsuka has dominated. He has won four total Crystal Globes, with his most recent being both the halfpipe and the overall Park and Pipe Crystal Globes from the 2025-26 season. He has won 11 total World Cups in his career, and at just 24 years old, he is almost certain to win more.
#2: Anna Gasser, Austria – Slopestyle/Big Air
The lone slopestyle and big air rider on the list is Austria’s Anna Gasser, with 33 World Cup podiums. One of the most decorated slopestyle and big air snowboarders of all time, Gasser holds multiple Olympic gold medals, multiple World Championship gold medals, 13 World Cup wins, and two Crystal Globes.
Gasser started snowboarding at 18 years old, an age when most elite competitive riders have already been competing at a high level for years. She was previously a gymnast on the Austrian national team, but quickly found herself in love with the freedom snowboarding brings. After graduating from high school, she moved to the U.S. to train at Mammoth Mountain, California.
“I loved that nobody told me what to do,” Gasser said in an interview with Snowboarder Magazine. “It was a huge feeling of freedom. In gymnastics, everything was regulated. I was used to having people giving me orders and making decisions for me. I really enjoyed the sport itself, but I was never able to do what I wanted. On a snowboard, I suddenly was my own master.”
It took Gasser some time to get used to a board beneath her feet, finishing 18th at her first World Championships. In her 2014 Olympic debut, she fell on both of her runs in the slopestyle final. But after a few years of competing, she found her footing.
At the 2018 Olympics in PyeongChang, big air was introduced as a brand-new discipline. Gasser would go on to win the inaugural Olympic big air event, and she successfully defended her gold in 2022 at the Beijing Winter Olympics. Gasser has competed in four total Olympic Games, and most recently competed in the 2026 Milano-Cortina Games.
Gasse has found success in World Cup competitions as well. In the 2016-17 season, she won the big air Crystal Globe, as well as the freestyle overall Crystal Globe. She first started competing in World Cups in 2014, and at 34, is still competing.
#1: Cai Xuetong, China – Halfpipe
With 35 World Cup podiums, China’s legendary Cai Xuetong has the most podiums of all-time. Competing since 2010, the 32-year-old halfpipe killer has racked up 13 World Cup wins, three World Championship gold medals, five Olympic appearances, and a record-setting seven Crystal Globes—five of them consecutive.
Xuetong grew up in Harbin, China, known as the country’s ice and snow capital. In the lead-up to the 2010 Olympics, snowboarding culture in China was virtually non-existent, but Xuetong helped push Chinese snowboarding into the international spotlight.
At just 16, Xuetong competed in the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver, where she was the youngest athlete in the competition. Four years later, she competed at the 2014 Games, where she finished in sixth place overall. Her best Olympic finish came in 2022, when she placed fourth overall.
The World Cup circuit is where Xuetong dominated. Her seven halfpipe Crystal Globes give her the most ever, winning five straight between 2015 and 2019. She began competing at World Cups in 2010 and has continued to compete, most recently finishing in second place at a World Cup in Laax, Switzerland, in 2026.
With years of proven success on the World Cup circuit, the 32-year-old Xuetong has cemented herself as one of the most legendary snowboarders of all time.
