Ulrik Samnøy - Freestyle Skier Norway

Snow was falling over Aspen in January 2026 when Ulrik Samnøy reached the World Cup slopestyle podium for the first time in his career. His equipment had not arrived in time for qualification, forcing him to ski in borrowed gear before recovering his own setup for the final. The conditions stayed difficult, with fresh snow and reduced visibility, but Samnøy put together the run he needed. The result arrived only weeks after his first World Cup victory in Beijing and confirmed that the Norwegian was no longer only a big-air specialist capable of isolated podiums.

Bærum beginnings: Kirkerudbakken builds Samnøy

Ulrik Samnøy was born in Bærum in 2002 and began skiing at nine years old at Kirkerudbakken, the small hill near Oslo that also produced riders including Birk Ruud and Tormod Frostad. Red Bull dates the start of his competitive career to 2016. Working with coaches including Per Kristian Hunder, Samnøy progressed quickly through Norwegian freeski. His first FIS top-ten result came at Dombås in 2017 while he was still fifteen, after which results in slopestyle and big air pushed him toward the World Rookie Tour and international starts. Bærums Skiklub remained his club as he moved from local park training into the Norwegian national system.

Kläppen 2019: Junior Worlds deliver gold

The 2019 season established Samnøy as one of Norway's strongest young freestyle prospects. At the Junior World Championships in Kläppen, Sweden, he won the men's big air title and added a bronze medal in slopestyle. The result followed earlier Junior World Championship appearances and showed that his jumping ability could translate into medals on an international championship course. He also became the 2019 World Rookie slopestyle champion at Seiser Alm, adding another title during the same phase of his career. The combination of controlled takeoffs, multiple-axis rotations and clean landings made big air particularly productive, although Samnøy continued to compete extensively in slopestyle rather than specialising exclusively in single-jump contests.

Deštné 2020: first World Cup podium

Samnøy's transition into senior World Cup competition produced an important breakthrough in February 2020 at Deštné, Czech Republic. In a big-air final featuring Birk Ruud, Antoine Adelisse, Elias Syrjä and other established riders, Samnøy landed a triple cork 1620 after already completing a switch triple 1440. The combination was enough for third place, his first World Cup podium. Norges Skiforbund later described that podium as the beginning of a senior career whose progress was interrupted by a significant knee injury. The recovery period slowed his momentum, but Samnøy remained part of Norway's elite freeski programme and continued rebuilding toward World Cup finals.

Recovery years: Samnøy rebuilds competition level

The seasons after his initial World Cup podium were less linear. Samnøy continued training with Norway's freeski team and appearing at international events, but the knee injury required a longer physical and mental rebuild than the rapid junior progression that preceded it. His skiing remained visible through Norwegian-team park sessions, including trips with riders such as Christian Nummedal, Sebastian Schjerve, Tormod Frostad, Herman Orheim, Øystein Bråten and Birk Ruud. He also appeared in projects around Saas-Fee, Dombås and southern-hemisphere training. Rather than disappearing from competition, Samnøy gradually restored the jump volume and confidence necessary for modern big air, where switch takeoffs, triple corks and high rotational amplitude had become standard at the top of the field.

Beijing 2025: first World Cup victory

On 6 December 2025, Samnøy returned to the site of the Beijing Olympic big-air venue and earned the first World Cup victory of his career. The win came more than five years after his first podium at Deštné and represented his strongest senior result to that point. Norges Skiforbund described the victory as a major milestone after the work required to return from injury. Samnøy finished ahead of an international field that included Matej Švancer and Luca Harrington on the podium. The result also pushed him into Norway's Olympic selection conversation at exactly the right moment. His big-air skiing had regained both amplitude and consistency, while the technical variety needed for qualification and finals placed him among the leading international riders of the 2025/26 season.

Aspen 2026: slopestyle reaches podium

Samnøy expanded that breakthrough in January 2026 at Aspen. His luggage and equipment problems forced him through qualification using borrowed skis and clothing, but his own gear arrived before the final. In fresh snow and difficult visibility, he recovered from problems in his opening run and produced the performance that earned his first career World Cup slopestyle podium. Norges Skiforbund highlighted the result as the first time Samnøy had reached the podium in that discipline. Coming immediately after the Beijing victory, it demonstrated a broader competitive range: he could now convert not only the concentrated trick difficulty of big air but also full slopestyle runs involving rails, transitions and multiple jumps.

Livigno 2026: Olympic debut reaches final

Norway selected Samnøy for the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics alongside Birk Ruud, Tormod Frostad and Sebastian Schjerve. In Livigno, he qualified eighth for the men's big air final after combining scores of 87.00 and 89.00. In the final, his best two-jump total was 110.75, placing him ninth overall. Olympedia records Tormod Frostad winning the event ahead of Mac Forehand and Matej Švancer. Samnøy also contested slopestyle, finishing 24th in qualification. The Olympic appearance automatically places him at 4/5 under the importance scale, while the World Cup victory, Junior World Championship title and podiums give that rating substantial competitive depth rather than making it dependent on participation alone.

Main competition results

2025/26 — Olympic Winter Games, Livigno — Big air — 9th
2025/26 — Olympic Winter Games, Livigno — Slopestyle — 24th
2025/26 — World Cup, Aspen — Slopestyle — Podium
2025/26 — World Cup, Beijing — Big air — 1st
2019/20 — World Cup, Deštné — Big air — 3rd
2019 — Junior World Championships, Kläppen — Big air — 1st
2019 — Junior World Championships, Kläppen — Slopestyle — 3rd
2019 — World Rookie Finals, Seiser Alm — Slopestyle — 1st
2018 — Junior World Championships, Cardrona — Big air — 5th
2018 — Junior World Championships, Cardrona — Slopestyle — 13th

Selection of his strongest documented international results. Not a complete competition record.

In April and May 2026, Samnøy remained active beyond the standard World Cup calendar at Red Bull Unrailistic in Åre. He finished sixth in the best-trick ranking, another indication that his post-Olympic season continued inside high-level progressive freeski rather than ending with Livigno.