SuperUnknown 23

SuperUnknown 23 was the 2026 Level 1 freeski talent search final held at Banff Sunshine Village, Alberta from April 20 to 24 2026 | Disciplines: park skiing, street influenced video parts, spring park sessions and recap edits | Notable winners: Alex Bateman and Eleonora Ferrari | Format: video submissions, finalist week, rider vote and FilmerUnknown recaps

Banff Sunshine Took SuperUnknown International

SuperUnknown 23 took place at Banff Sunshine Village in Alberta, Canada from April 20 to 24 2026, marking the first time the event kicked off on international grounds. The finals were originally planned for Palisades Tahoe, but Level 1 moved the event north after snowpack concerns in California and strong late-season coverage in the Canadian Rockies. The official Level 1 SuperUnknown archive lists the 2026 edition as hosted at Banff Sunshine Village with Eleonora Ferrari and Alex Bateman as the winners. That venue switch became part of the story rather than a footnote: the event landed in a high-elevation spring park with enough snow, terrain and operations support to absorb a last-minute finals week.

Sixteen Finalists Entered A Sixty Pro Week

The 2026 finalist group included 16 amateur skiers selected from global video submissions. Freeskier listed Zoe Greze-Kozuki, Hannah Langes, Kai Martin, Tuva Skanderby, Faelan Coldwater, Quinn Noyes, Alex Bateman, Hinata “Sunny” Nogi, Nalu Nussbaum, Anders Ujejski, Ruben Källner Boman, Tommy De Jager, Reece Rule, Eleonora Ferrari, Milo Nicholson and Elise Tate. Around them, Level 1 brought more than 60 pros and alumni into the same week. That mix is the SuperUnknown formula at its strongest: unknown or emerging riders are not isolated in a junior contest, they are dropped into a culture room with filmers, pros, alumni and people who understand how ski footage gets remembered.

Bateman And Ferrari Took The Main Titles

SuperUnknown 23 — April 2026
Men’s Winner: Alex Bateman (USA)
Women’s Winner: Eleonora Ferrari (FRA)

The safest result record is category based rather than a full podium. Level 1’s official recap names Bateman as Male SuperUnknown 23 and Ferrari as Female SuperUnknown 23. No complete second and third place table should be attached unless Level 1 publishes one in that form. That restraint fits the format. SuperUnknown is not a normal slopestyle event with a formal scoring sheet. The winners come from the week’s riding, footage, rider vote and the way each skier stands out inside a filmed session environment. The title rewards the whole impression, not one final run.

Rider Of The Week Awards Added A Pro Layer

SuperUnknown 23 Recognition Awards — April 2026
Male Rider of the Week: Ryan Buttars (USA)
Female Rider of the Week: Olivia Asselin (CAN)
OG 30 Plus: Remco Kayser (NED)

The Rider of the Week awards gave the edition a second competitive layer beyond the amateur titles. Buttars and Asselin were not simply background pros. Their recognition showed which riders shaped the room once everyone was skiing the same park and watching the same footage. Asselin’s award fit her current profile as one of the most complete style skiers in women’s freeskiing, while Buttars’ result reinforced his fast rise through rail events, Jib League, SLVSH and American park culture. Remco Kayser’s OG 30 Plus award connected the 2026 edition to the deeper SuperUnknown alumni history.

FilmerUnknown Turned The Recap Into A Contest

SuperUnknown 23 revived the FilmerUnknown layer, giving the camera crew its own competition inside the week. Hugo Monmont won the FilmerUnknown award by athlete vote, while Chris DeJohn, Nick Thucydides, Suspect and Walter Wood also produced recap work around the event. Freeskier described the result as five different visual interpretations of the same Banff Sunshine week. That matters because SuperUnknown is a video talent search before it is a scoreboard. The way the skiing is filmed changes the way a rider is understood. A rail trick, transfer, crash, reaction or late-day hit can become more important when the edit gives it the right rhythm.

Cheap Fun Winners Kept The Week Loose

Level 1 also named Liam Baxter and Dasha Agafonova as Cheap Fun PUB BEER winners. That award category belongs to the social language of SuperUnknown. The event is serious because it can change a skier’s visibility, but it does not work if it feels like a sterile federation final. The week needs jokes, side sessions, weird clips, failed ideas, crew dinners, filmer debates and the feeling that skiers are making something together. Cheap Fun gives that atmosphere a name. It rewards the kind of energy that does not always appear in results but often defines whether a week becomes memorable.

Level 1 And Monster Kept The Talent Pipeline Visible

Level 1 remains the reason SuperUnknown carries weight. The series began as a video talent search outside traditional competition pathways and has introduced skiers through clips, style and film presence rather than only ranking points. In 2026, Monster Energy, Banff Sunshine Village, Giro, PUB Light and Turtlebox supported the event environment, but the central product was still rider visibility. SuperUnknown 23 gave finalists a reason to submit footage, travel to a real park week, ski beside pros and leave with a public record that could matter more than many small contest podiums.

Where SuperUnknown 23 Fits In The Archive

SuperUnknown 23 should be indexed as a major alternative freeski competition edition, not as a standard slopestyle event. Its permanent facts are clear: 2026, Banff Sunshine Village, April 20 to 24, 16 finalists, more than 60 pros, Alex Bateman men’s winner, Eleonora Ferrari women’s winner, Ryan Buttars and Olivia Asselin Rider of the Week awards, Remco Kayser OG recognition and Hugo Monmont’s FilmerUnknown win. The edition’s importance comes from the venue shift and the format together. SuperUnknown left the United States for the first time, adapted quickly to Banff snow, and still delivered the same core promise: emerging skiers judged through footage, style, peer attention and the ability to stand out inside a real ski week.