Hugo Burvall

Profile and significance

Hugo Burvall is a Swedish freeski athlete born on 19 April 1997, best known for his powerful big air skiing, creative slopestyle lines and crossover work as a filmer, musician and sound designer. Representing Sweden and the club Sundsvalls Slalomklubb, he has become one of the most distinctive all-round talents in modern freeskiing: an Olympian and multiple World Cup podium finisher who also appears in core street films and experimental projects from crews like The Bunch and Suéde. On snow he is a big-air specialist with an emphasis on long-held grabs, technical switch moves and strong competition composure; off snow he shapes the sound and feel of movies through music and sound design.

What sets Burvall apart is the way he bridges “official” freeskiing with its underground culture. He has stood on FIS World Cup big air podiums, finished a season ranked third overall in the World Cup big air standings, and represented Sweden at the Olympic Winter Games. At the same time, he is a regular at culture-defining events like Kimbo Sessions in the slushy paradise of Kläppen Snowpark and the rider-driven Jib League, and he contributes to films and brand projects not only as a skier, but also behind the scenes. That combination of contest credentials and creative depth makes him a key name for anyone following modern park, big air and street-influenced freeski.

Competitive arc and key venues

Burvall entered FIS competition in his mid-teens and made his Freestyle World Cup debut in January 2016 in Mammoth, California. His major breakthrough came the following season in big air. In November 2017 he landed on the podium at the World Cup big air stop in Milan, Italy, taking second place with a high-scoring switch double cork tail-grab combination. That result proved he could deliver on a big stage, and he backed it up later in the same 2017–2018 season with another second place at the big air World Cup in Quebec, Canada. With those two podiums he finished the season ranked third overall in the World Cup big air standings, a major achievement in one of freestyle skiing’s most competitive disciplines.

In the years that followed, Burvall became a mainstay on the international big air and slopestyle circuit. He routinely appeared in stacked start lists at venues like Chur’s city big air, Stubai’s glacier parks and other World Cup stops across Europe and North America. His career reached a new milestone in 2022 when he represented Sweden at the Winter Olympic Games in Beijing, competing in both men’s freeski big air and slopestyle. Results there show the reality of elite competition: he did not advance to finals, but his presence on the Olympic stage confirmed his status among the world’s best. In 2023 he added a strong World Championships performance, qualifying for and skiing in the slopestyle final in Bakuriani, Georgia, where he placed sixteenth. He also lined up in big air at those championships, further cementing his position as a dual-event threat.

How they ski: what to watch for

Burvall’s skiing is defined by a mix of power, control and playful detail. In big air, he is particularly known for tricks where the grab is not just an accessory but the centrepiece: locked-in tail grabs, tail-to-tail combos and variations where he holds the ski so long that it becomes the visual focus of the jump. Coverage from events like Big Air Chur has highlighted how narrowly missing a second grab can be the difference between a massive score and a modest one for him, because judges and fans now expect that extra technical layer in his tricks. Watching his runs, you’ll see how early he reaches for the ski, how long he keeps contact, and how cleanly he releases the grab into the landing.

On slopestyle courses and at sessions such as Kimbo Sessions in Sweden’s Kläppen Ski Resort, Burvall’s approach becomes even more creative. He often uses side hits, rollers and subtle transitions to create lines that differ from the standard contest routes, mixing technical rails with transfers, nose-butter entries and off-axis spins that read beautifully on camera. Instead of chasing the most rotations possible, he focuses on trick composition and flow: a well-timed switch 900 with a perfect tail grab and precise landing will often say more about his skiing than a rushed higher-spin trick would. For progressing riders, his style is a case study in how to combine difficulty with aesthetics.

Resilience, filming, and influence

Maintaining a presence in both the World Cup system and the film world demands resilience, and Burvall has shown plenty of it. Big air and slopestyle seasons are long, with constant travel and variable conditions, and World Cup big air venues like Milan or Quebec ask athletes to perform on scaffolding jumps in changing weather in front of large crowds. The mental resilience required to repeatedly climb those stairs and drop in with podium expectations is significant. Burvall’s ability to return year after year, adjusting to evolving trick standards while still prioritising style, is one reason he remains respected by peers and fans alike.

At the same time, he has invested deeply in filming and creative projects. He appears in The Bunch’s award-winning film “Many Fantasies Later” and in Suéde’s raw street-skiing film “Exciety Threshold,” which showcase the more experimental side of his skiing in urban and backcountry-adjacent environments. With Swiss brand Movement Skis, he’s part of movies like “Reflection,” an artistic project that blends park and freeride imagery. Beyond on-screen skiing, he has contributed sound design and music to projects such as Harlaut Apparel Co’s “It’s That,” and he has supported friends’ edits with his audio work. This dual role as skier and sound-designer reinforces his influence on how modern freeski films look and feel, not just on what tricks make the final cut.

Geography that built the toolkit

Burvall’s skiing is rooted in Sweden, and his geographic path has shaped his toolkit. Coming up with Sundsvalls Slalomklubb in northern Sweden gave him a foundation on relatively modest hills, where repetition, icy nights and compact parks train precise edge control and strong basics. As his career progressed, he spent more time in southern Swedish parks like Kläppen Snowpark—home of the now-legendary Kimbo Sessions—and in other European resorts that prioritise park design. These environments reward skiers who can spot creative lines, adjust to ever-changing features and make the most of slushy spring conditions.

International competition has taken him far beyond Sweden. Big air World Cups in urban venues like Milan, city events in places such as Chur, and major contests in North America and Asia forced him to adapt to different jump shapes, snow textures and atmospheres. World Championship events in Georgia’s mountainous Bakuriani region and Olympic starts in China added altitude, travel and global media attention to the mix. All of this has produced an athlete who is comfortable moving from a carefully shaped park jump to a less forgiving city big-air setup or a creative session at a rider-driven event like Jib League at resorts such as Sugar Bowl Resort.

Equipment and partners: practical takeaways

On the equipment front, Burvall spent years riding for K2 before signing with Swiss manufacturer Movement Skis. In interviews he has explained that the move was driven by a desire for a closer, more collaborative relationship with a brand where he could help shape graphics, projects and long-term direction. He now rides Movement’s FLY series—most often the FLY 95 in contests, with wider variants like the FLY 105 for more buttery, playful skiing. These skis are designed to balance quick edge-to-edge response for big air and slopestyle with enough surface area and flex to feel lively on softer snow and in creative terrain.

For skiers looking to draw lessons from his setup, the key takeaway is that equipment should match both your discipline and your personality. A responsive twin-tip ski with a medium-stiff flex, mounted centrally and paired with trustworthy bindings, will support serious park and big-air progression. But Burvall’s story also highlights the value of working with brands that support your broader vision—whether that means contributing ideas to ski design, taking part in film projects, or helping to shape a brand’s creative output. Boots, outerwear and protective gear that let you move freely and handle heavy impacts round out the package, but his career suggests that the relationship with your tools and sponsors can be as important as the hardware itself.

Why fans and progressing skiers care

Fans care about Hugo Burvall because he represents a complete, modern vision of a freeski athlete. He has the numbers—World Cup podiums, a top-three overall big air ranking in a World Cup season, Olympic starts and World Championship finals—but he also has the cultural footprint: appearances in influential films, a presence at core events like Kimbo Sessions, and a growing catalogue of music and sound work that shapes how freeskiing is experienced on screen. For dedicated followers of park, big air and street-style skiing, he is a rider who has earned credibility both in FIS bibs and in hoodie-and-beanie film segments.

For progressing skiers, Burvall’s journey offers a powerful blueprint. He shows that it is possible to pursue contest success without sacrificing individuality, and that you can contribute to the sport in more ways than just landing tricks—through filmmaking, music, event formats and brand collaborations. Watching his runs and edits, aspiring riders can study how he uses grabs, speed management and line choice to make difficult tricks look effortless, and how he stays true to a style-first philosophy even as the technical bar rises. In an era where freeskiing is pulled between mainstream visibility and underground roots, Hugo Burvall stands as one of the athletes successfully connecting those worlds.