Canada's Simon d'Artois notched his first World Cup ski halfpipe win of his career on Thursday in Secret Garden, China.
The 26-year-old from Whistler, B.C., scored 93.60 points in his final run to beat out New Zealand's Nico Porteous (89.50) and American Hunter Hess (85.50).
D'Artois leads the World Cup standings after two events. He finished sixth in the opener.
"I am super excited with how today went ... I've been skiing consistently and I'm happy to have been able to put down three solid runs," said d'Artois. "I am really looking forward to the rest of the season.”
Calgary's Brendan MacKay and Evan Marineau finished fifth and 12th, respectively.
On the women's side, Rachael Karker (85.75 points) of Erin, Ont., reached the World Cup podium for the first time as she finished second behind China's Kexin Zhang (87.75). China's Fanghui Li (83.75) took bronze.
Karker, 21, captured gold at a Dew Tour event last week in Breckenridge, Colo.
"I am happy with how the event went. I took some pretty heavy falls in training and I was feeling a bit run down and exhausted from the past three weeks with all of the contests we have done and coming straight to China after Dew Tour." Karker said. "I am grateful to have been able to compete in the next Olympic venue pipe and able to stand on the podium here."
The Canadian Press
