The Jossi Wells Invitational - 2024

The Jossi Wells Invitational 2024 was an athlete-judged ski and snowboard invitational held at Cardrona Alpine Resort and Treble Cone in New Zealand from September 10 to 15 2024 | Disciplines: freeski, snowboard, big air, rail jam, halfpipe and open progression sessions | Notable award winners: Kokomo Murase, Jackson Wells, Alex Hall and Olivia Asselin | Format: invite-only rider-judged week with progression sessions and closing awards

Cardrona Carried The September 2024 Session Week

The Jossi Wells Invitational 2024 took place from September 10 to 15 2024 at Cardrona Alpine Resort in New Zealand, with Treble Cone entering the week when weather redirected riders toward freeride snow. The event was presented by Monster Energy and built around the same idea that has defined JWI since 2016: bring hand-picked skiers and snowboarders to Wānaka, let them ride serious terrain, then let the athletes decide which performances carried the most weight. It was not a single-run contest. It was a five-day progression week.

Seventy Riders And A Hand Picked Field

The 2024 edition involved 70 athletes from Japan, Canada, Estonia, Russia, New Zealand and the United States. That international mix gave the event more reach than a local Cardrona session, but the tone stayed close to the Wānaka freestyle scene. Jossi Wells remained in charge of the invite logic, which is important for the event’s identity. JWI works because the rider list feels curated, not automatically seeded by ranking points. The field is chosen for style, influence, snowboarding and skiing range, and the ability to contribute to a week where the footage matters as much as the award names.

The 2024 Jossi Wells Open Changed The Feature Map

The 2024 Jossi Wells Open introduced a multi-hit feature around the big air jump, giving riders more choices than a standard one-jump invitational. The setup included rail options, a wallride, a knuckle and the classic big air jump, allowing athletes to build different lines through the same zone. That detail matters because it changed the judging language. A rider could stand out through a huge aerial, but also through a rail variation, a creative wallride, a knuckle trick or a line that connected the feature in an unexpected way. The edition rewarded interpretation, not just amplitude.

Verified Award Record From Wanaka

Jossi Wells Invitational 2024 — September 2024
Women’s Snowboard Rider of the Week: Kokomo Murase (JPN)
Men’s Freeski Style Master of the Week: Jackson Wells (NZL)
Men’s Freeski Director’s Choice: Alex Hall (USA)
Women’s Freeski Director’s Choice: Olivia Asselin (CAN)

No full podium table should be attached to the 2024 edition unless JWI, Cardrona or Monster Energy publishes one in that form. The reliable public record is category-based: Murase won Women’s Snowboard Rider of the Week, Jackson Wells won Men’s Freeski Style Master of the Week, and Alex Hall and Olivia Asselin received Director’s Choice awards in freeski. That structure fits the event. JWI is not trying to crown a slopestyle champion through one score. It recognizes the riders who shaped the week.

Kokomo Murase Put A 1440 Into The Big Air Story

Kokomo Murase gave the snowboard side one of the clearest technical markers of the event. Her Women’s Snowboard Rider of the Week award was tied to heavy riding across the week, with a standout 1440 over the big air feature. That detail gives the 2024 edition a measurable progression point without forcing the whole event into a scoreboard. Murase arrived in New Zealand only one week after winning Women’s Snowboard Slopestyle at the Winter Games NZ FIS Snowboard Slopestyle World Cup, so her JWI award extended a strong early-season Southern Hemisphere run.

Jackson Wells Turned Style Into The Ski Award

Jackson Wells receiving Men’s Freeski Style Master of the Week gave the edition a strong local anchor. The award matched both the event and the skier. Jackson’s skiing is built around contorted aerials, controlled spins, unusual shapes and a body language that makes difficult tricks look less mechanical. At Cardrona, that style has extra weight because it is home terrain. The 2024 award placed him at the center of the ski side without needing a conventional first-place result. In a rider-judged format, style is not decoration. It is one of the main competitive categories.

Alex Hall And Olivia Asselin Took Director’s Choice

Alex Hall and Olivia Asselin winning Director’s Choice on the freeski side gave the 2024 edition two different creative directions. Hall’s award reflected his ability to mix high-level trick invention with rail variations and park problem-solving. Asselin’s award reflected the kind of all-terrain style that has made her one of the most interesting Canadian freeskiers of the current generation. Director’s Choice is useful because it does not pretend to be a full ranking. It identifies the riders whose skiing shaped the visual record of the week, especially when the event is designed for clips, recaps and peer reaction.

Treble Cone Weather Days Added A Mountain Layer

Weather changed the 2024 week. Heavy snow and wind affected the Cardrona program, and riders spent two of the event days skiing powder at Treble Cone. That disruption actually strengthened the edition’s identity. JWI is based in the Wānaka snow ecosystem, not only on one shaped park feature. Cardrona gave the event the progression setup, but Treble Cone added a freeride escape when the storm cycle made park riding less realistic. For a ski and snowboard audience, that combination is valuable: one event week moved from rails and big air into powder turns without losing its core roster.

Monster Energy And The Closing Dinner Frame

Monster Energy gave the 2024 edition its main sponsor frame, but the event’s cultural shape came from the rider room. Awards were presented during a closing dinner at Rippon Winery overlooking Lake Wānaka, which fits the invitational format better than a stadium podium. The week also included athlete poster signings for more than 100 local kids, connecting the global rider list back to the Wānaka community. Those details matter because JWI is not only a content shoot. It is a seasonal gathering where New Zealand fans, local families and elite riders share the same snow window.

Where The 2024 Edition Fits In The Archive

The Jossi Wells Invitational 2024 should be indexed as a major alternative ski and snowboard invitational, not as a standard slopestyle, big air or rail jam event. Its permanent facts are clear: Cardrona, Treble Cone, September 10 to 15, 70 invited athletes, rider judging, a five-day progression format, a multi-hit big-air zone, weather-driven powder days and awards for Kokomo Murase, Jackson Wells, Alex Hall and Olivia Asselin. The edition matters because it shows the current JWI formula at full scale: elite riders, flexible terrain, peer recognition, Southern Hemisphere timing and a format where style can win without needing a traditional podium.