Scotty James Tops Snowboarding Halfpipe Qualifying at Olympics 2026

Scotty James delivered on his title as event favorite in qualifying for the men's snowboard halfpipe final.

The Australian produced a score of 94 points on the first of his two runs to top the qualification standings.

Three of the four Americans entered into the event qualified for the 12-man final. Alessandro Barbieri was the top qualifier of the trio in fourth.

Men's Snowboard Halfpipe Results

1. Scotty James (Australia) - 94.00
2. Yuto Totsuka (Japan) - 91.25
3. Ryusei Yamada (Japan) - 90.25
4. Alessandro Barbieri (USA) - 88.50
5. Ruka Hirano (Japan) - 87.50
6. Valentino Guseli (Australia) - 86.75
7. Ayumu Hirano (Japan) - 85.50
8. Campbell Melville Ives (New Zealand) - 84.75
9. Chaeun Lee (South Korea) - 82.00
10. Wang Ziyang (China) - 80.50
11. Chase Josey (USA) - 76.50
12. Jake Pates (USA) - 75.50

Scotty James threw down the best score of the two runs in qualifying.

The Australian, who won the last FIS World Cup event prior to the Milan Cortina Games, produced a score of 94.00 points that no one was able to touch.

The Japanese duo of Yuto Totsuka and Ryusei Yamada were the only other athletes to record scores of 90 points during qualifying.

Totsuka and Yamada are two of five different snowboarders who have won the halfpipe event on the World Cup circuit this season.

Australia's Valentino Guseli and Japan's Ayumu Hirano are the other World Cup winners this season. They both qualified inside the top seven.

Alessandro Barbieri was the top American qualifier. He finished fourth with a score of 88.50. He could be in the medal conversation with a few solid runs in the final.

The other two American qualifiers were Chase Josey and Jake Pates. They earned the last two spots in the final in 11th and 12th.