Sport
2 June, 2025
Crankworx ends amazingly
CRANKWORX Cairns has wrapped up in spectacular style with two crowd-favourite events bringing the week to a close on Sunday: Crankworx Cairns slopestyle and the specialised dual slalom.
After a week of sunshine, fast tracks and high stoke, the tropical vibes carried through to the final day at Smithfield Mountain Bike Park, with just a few gusts of wind and a brief shower unable to dampen the energy of fans and riders alike.
A Crankworx spokeswoman said this year’s slopestyle course in Cairns underwent a major revamp, ditching most of its wooden features in favour of a more natural, flowy build – a change that gave athletes space to link technical tricks and push progression.
“Riders had two runs each, with the best score counting. And what a showdown it turned out to be. A field stacked with legends, podium contenders and rising stars brought one of the most competitive events the FMBA Slopestyle World Championship (SWC) has seen in recent memory,” she said.
The spokeswoman said defending champion Alma Wiggberg returned to the Crankworx stage in dominant form after coming back from a shoulder injury.
“Her first run set the bar sky-high with a massive 90.50, a score that went unmatched all day,” she said.
“Alma’s run blended style and amplitude, showcasing, suicide no hander, backflip bar spin, toboggan, 360, backflip one foot can, 360 bar spin.”
Ms Wiggberg said the mental part had “been difficult to feel confident and trusting since I had the same injury for four years”.
“It’s been hard to find the confidence that it will be good. But I’ve been working a lot on it and just being here riding gives me a lot of confidence”, she said.
In the men’s competition Tim Bringer stole the show. The French rider threw down what might go down what may have been of his greatest runs so far.
“Leading with a double backflip tuck no hander over the course’s only wooden feature, Tim’s high-amplitude run racked up a 92.37, securing him the win,” the spokeswoman said.
