Isaac Simhon - Ez panda

Cape Verde / Geneva, Switzerland | Active: 2014-present public record | Known for: EZ Panda, Harlaut Apparel, Salute, Misunderstood, street and park style | Current: FIS active athlete and creative park/street skier

Schilthorn Presses With The Panda Mask On

The rail at Pända Snowpark sat above the Schilthorn clouds, black metal against early-season snow, and Isaac Simhon came in without looking rushed. A press, a tap, a small redirect, then the kind of landing that makes the trick feel lighter than it is. That is the point of EZ Panda. Simhon’s skiing rarely depends on the largest rotation in the park. It uses timing, posture, clothing, humor, small features, and body language until the clip feels more like a character than a run. His public career has moved from FIS scorecards into street parts, Harlaut Apparel films, Vars park laps, Andorra rails and a style-first lane that is easy to recognize.

Cape Verde Birth, Geneva Years

FIS lists Isaac Simhon under Cape Verde, born on March 14, 2000, with FIS Code 2530120 and active status. Downdays gives the broader personal map: born in Cape Verde, raised in Geneva, Switzerland, and later connected to La Clusaz and Laax as early ski bases. El Tony Mate also lists his place of residence as Genève and his homespot as Leysin. That combination makes his profile unusual in freeskiing. He is not simply a Swiss park skier in the standard federation sense, and he is not framed only through Cape Verde’s FIS listing. His identity crosses migration, Geneva city life, French and Swiss parks, and a freestyle scene that values personality as much as formal nationality.

La Clusaz And The Word Easy

The EZ Panda name has its own origin story. In his Downdays interview, Simhon explained that “EZ” came from a coach at La Clusaz who used to calm him down after runs by saying “Easy, easy.” The Panda part came later from a panda hat a friend gave him, which he wore so often that people began using the nickname. That story matters because it does not feel manufactured by a brand. It came from coaching, friends, clothing, habit and repetition. The nickname fits his skiing because many of his clips are built around that same contrast: casual surface, precise movement underneath.

Swiss Big Air And The FIS Trail

Simhon does have an official competition record, even if it no longer defines his public image. FIS results show starts from 2014 onward in slopestyle, big air and halfpipe, including Junior World Championships in Chiesa in Valmalenco in 2015, World Cup slopestyle starts at Silvaplana in 2016 and 2019, European Cup events at Vars, La Clusaz, Tignes, Crans Montana, Livigno, St. Anton, Davos, Kotelnica Bialczanska and Les Arcs, plus recent FIS slopestyle podiums at SnowZone Madrid in 2024. Knuckle Magazine also described him as Swiss big-air champion in 2018. The official record shows a skier who entered the system early, then slowly became more visible through style-driven video than through contest rankings.

Saas-Fee Summer And The Style Label

By 2019, Simhon’s image was already being discussed less as a results story and more as a style story. Downdays posted “Saas Fee X EZ” from the Saas-Fee summer park and framed him as EZ Panda, a Swiss rider with a distinct visual approach. Knuckle followed with a French-language portrait built around the idea that his style was not an accident. Saas-Fee is a useful setting for that stage of his career. Summer park skiing strips away some of winter’s drama. The snow is soft, the features are repeated all day, and every rider in the park can see who is forcing tricks and who has a natural rhythm.

Salute Beside Harlaut’s Circle

The bigger cultural jump came through Henrik Harlaut’s film Salute. Harlaut Apparel describes Salute as a two-year project filmed across locations including Chamonix, Jackson Hole, Grandvalira and Riksgränsen, with skiers such as Henrik Harlaut, Øystein Bråten, Jacob Wester, Chris Logan, Karl Fostvedt, Noah Albaladejo, Clayton Vila, Cam Riley, Morten Grape, Tom Ritsch, Valentin Morel and Isaac Simhon. For Simhon, appearing in that lineup mattered because Harlaut’s world is not a random platform. It is one of freeskiing’s strongest style lineages: competitions, street, backcountry, music, clothing, history and individuality blended into one visual language.

Andorra Rails With Henrik And Morten

FREESKIER’s 2020 coverage of Andorra rail sessions placed Simhon with Henrik Harlaut and Morten Grape in an early-season rail edit. The context is small but revealing. Andorra, especially around Grandvalira, has been a recurring meeting point for European freeskiers who want park, rails and soft spring sessions without the formality of a major FIS start. In that environment, Simhon’s skiing works because the setup does not need to be huge. A rail, a side hit, a small transfer or a ledge can carry the whole clip if the skier has enough control in the press, tap or landing.

Vars With Alexis Ghisleni

Lost Souls, the 2023 short from Vars, placed Isaac “EZ Panda” Simhon with Alexis Ghisleni in a park-focused film by Thibauld Audouard and Brust Studio. Vars gives a different texture from Geneva or Leysin. The resort has long park lines, French freestyle history, high-speed jump approaches and enough feature variety for skiers who mix rails with playful air. The Downdays listing tags K2 Skis, France, park skiing and both riders, which puts Simhon in a sharper European park context. He is not only a street personality around Harlaut’s circle. He can carry a clean resort edit with another style-heavy skier.

Misunderstood In Stockholm And Andorra

Misunderstood, presented by Harlaut Apparel in late 2024, is the clearest recent marker of his street identity. Downdays describes the part as a montage of EZ Panda filmed in Stockholm and Andorra during the 2023-24 season, produced by Harlaut Apparel Co. and edited by Henrik Harlaut. The filmer list includes Yohan Lovey, Henrik Harlaut, Andrea Cadena, Brady Perron, Noah Albaladejo, Markus Hjortek and Hugo Gadelius. That credit list places Simhon directly inside a modern street-ski network. Stockholm means cold rails, city architecture, short in-runs and urban patience. Andorra brings the softer park-and-street hybrid where Harlaut’s crew often works.

Presses, Taps And Not Needing The Biggest Spin

Technically, Simhon’s public skiing is built around touch rather than force. El Tony Mate lists cork five, nose butter five and nollie one among his preferred tricks, while Downdays’ Pända Snowpark writeup points to presses, taps and general style instead of bigger spins. Those details line up with the footage language around him. He uses nose pressure, delayed exits, nollie timing, rail balance, small grabs, body lean, switch control and clothing as part of the visual statement. Some skiers hide the preparation. Simhon lets the setup breathe. The approach, the hand movement, the afterbang and the landing stance all become part of the trick.

El Tony Mate, K2 And The Brand Side

Simhon’s sponsor and brand record reflects the same personality-first lane. Downdays listed K2, Full Tilt, Oakley, Harlaut Apparel, Chanvre DC and Riseup.ch among his sponsors in 2020. El Tony Mate later gave him an athlete page with Leysin as homespot and Kläppen, Åre and Adelboden listed among park or spot references, plus events such as Riverstyle, Maunakea Day and Buldoz Invitational. That mix is not the profile of a skier chasing only Olympic selection. It is a brand ecosystem around style, apparel, drink culture, small events, park edits, and a public identity that travels well on video.

The EZ Panda Lane Now

Isaac Simhon’s current profile sits between official athlete and creative skier. FIS keeps him active under Cape Verde, with a competition trail that stretches from Junior Worlds and World Cups to recent FIS slopestyle podiums in Madrid. The freeski audience knows him more clearly as EZ Panda: Geneva-based, La Clusaz-shaped, Harlaut-linked, filmed in Salute, visible in Andorra, Vars, Schilthorn and Stockholm, and recognizable for presses, taps, nollies, nose butters and a clothing-heavy sense of identity. His next factual markers are likely to come from Harlaut Apparel edits, street parts, park shoots and European style events rather than a classic World Cup storyline.