BY KAREN BOSSICK
Sun Valley’s Toby Rafford just missed out on taking gold in the Freeride World Tour’s Xtreme Verbier held over the weekend on a challenging course in Switzerland.
He took second with 94.67 points to Ben Richards’ 96.00 and also ended up second in the overall Men’s Freeride World Tour rankings for the 2025-26 season with 31,350 points to Richards 32,000 points.
Excellent conditions blessed the challenging Bec des Rosses course at the 31st edition of the FWT Xtreme Verbier. Twenty inches of fresh snow had fallen on the steep, technical venue, which has helped define the sport since 1996.
Rafford delivered some of the season’s most memorable moments, including a huge cliff drop 360 and a huge double drop to finish out his run.
New Zealand’s Ben Richards took first with a huge 360, another 360, multiple airs and a last big 360 transfer. U.S. skier Ross Tester took third in the overall Men’s Freeride World Tour rankings despite finishing tenth in the Verbier.
“Toby is one of the most fun freeride skiers to watch and clearly one of the best in the world,” said Ashley Smith, media relations director for FWT U.S. Media.
Rafford said he felt “super good” about his season and was hyped for Ben Richards whom, he said, deserved the win.
“Dropping the Bec felt good, and just as scary as the first time, maybe even scarier,” Rafford said. “Being up there alone was crazy, but when you get to the bottom, it's so much fun.
Richards praised Rafford: “I ski with Ross Tester and Toby Rafford every day, so having to put it down and know that I had to beat them on this face, it was hard to back myself in that situation. The three of us help each other out a lot and look at lines together. We all just wanted to do the best we could and see who ended up on top. Being on the podium with them today is the best.”
U.S. Snowboarder Mia Jones, the daughter of legendary snowboarder Jeremy Jones, took both the event win and overall title in the snowboarder category. Her father won the Xtreme Verbier in 2005, the year Mia was born.
Victor de Le Rue of France secured a record-breaking fifth FWT Champion title.