OFFBEAT - Kadi Gomis
Kadi Gomis
Profile and significance
Kaditane “Kadi” Gomis is a French freestyle skier specializing in slopestyle and big air, based in La Clusaz, France. Born on August 4, 2002, he comes from a ski-oriented family (his father competed for Senegal in alpine skiing at the Olympics). Gomis has steadily progressed through the French national circuit into European Cups and has begun making starts at World Cup level. His value lies in being part of the next wave of young European freestylers blending park and big air work while also pursuing education and creative expression alongside competition.
Competitive arc and key venues
Gomis first made national waves in France, winning the overall French Cup classification in slopestyle and big air in 2019 while still a teenager. According to his FIS biography, he has competed in European Cup and World Cup qualifiers in slopestyle and big air events from 2023-25, earning a first place in a European Cup Premium big air at Corvatsch in April 2025. He also competed at the 2020 Winter Youth Olympic Games in Lausanne, finishing 25th in slopestyle and 22nd in big air. Major venues for his progression include his home resort La Clusaz for national and European events, and venues such as Tignes and Corvatsch where he has participated in higher-level starts.
How they ski: what to watch for
Gomis’ skiing shows solid fundamentals: strong take-off posture, good speed control, and a focus on jump landings and big air builds more than large rail libraries. In big air, watch for his switch entries and grab variation rather than simply maximum spin counts. In slopestyle he is evolving his rail game while maintaining jump amplitude. For viewers you’ll note that his runs are clean but still developing compared to the established podium-regulars; his trick families lean toward the 1260–1440 range and his run construction often keeps the biggest trick for the final hit, giving a strong finishing impression.
Resilience, filming, and influence
Gomis combines sport with education: he is reported to be studying marketing techniques in Annecy while training and competing. He had to overcome injury during his earlier career (a fractured tibial plateau in 2020). His participation in film segments and content creation (with media focus on his “skier and geek” persona) show that he values his identity off the hill as well as on it. For young skiers he is a tangible example of balancing schooling, competition and creative expression, particularly in the French freestyle environment.
Geography that built the toolkit
Gomis grew up and trains in La Clusaz, a French mountain village with access to freestyle parks and big air setups situated in the Aravis range. That environment provided a strong base for park development, switch tricks and jump repetition. His competition trajectory has taken him across European venues such as Corvatsch (Switzerland), Tignes (France) and Kreischberg (Austria). Those venues exposed him to variable snow, feature scale and contest pressure—which helps explain the growth in his results from national to European Cup level.
Equipment and partners: practical takeaways
Gomis is listed on the team pages for Faction Skis, among other partners including Oakley and Alpina Watches, indicating he has support oriented around park/big air ski setups with performance and branding focus. For progressing skiers the lesson is clear: use gear that matches your primary discipline (for him big air and slopestyle), mount near centre if you ride switch frequently, and incorporate both competition and filming into your progression strategy. Also, training at a home-base with reliable park infrastructure plus travelling to contests builds the full toolkit described here.
Why fans and progressing skiers care
Kaditane Gomis represents the strong European developmental model in freeskiing—moving from national junior circuits to European Cups and into World Cup starts. For fans he offers a young skier with both technical promise and personality—his dual identity as athlete and creator gives additional dimension. For progressing riders he illustrates that you don’t have to be immediately winning World Cups to build a meaningful career: consistent European Cup results, creative content and good brand support matter. He may yet reach podiums on the highest level, and watching his growth gives insights into the pipeline of modern freestyle skiing.
Kläppen Snowpark
Overview and significance
Kläppen Snowpark is Sweden’s reference venue for park skiing—a purpose-built freestyle precinct inside the Kläppen Ski Resort area of Sälenfjällen, Dalarna. For scale and intent, it stands apart in Scandinavia: a dedicated park zone with national-level build quality that hosts championship weeks, team camps, and progression sessions throughout the season. The resort’s official materials emphasize just how much room the shapers have to work with—an area equivalent to roughly 14 football pitches—allowing long, flowing lines and large features when winter cooperates. The result is a park-first destination where you can stack repeatable laps on clearly tiered lines, from beginner boxes to pro-caliber jumps, without criss-crossing a whole mountain to find your run.
The venue also anchors a modern training ecosystem. Beyond the on-snow zones, Kläppen operates the Kläppen Arena with airbags, trampolines and a dry-slope rail garden for off-season air awareness. In recent years the resort has even introduced an autumn snowpark built from saved (“farmed”) snow, giving athletes and keen riders an early window to get back on rails before winter proper. For a video-led look at the scene, see our internal page skipowd.tv/location/klappen-snowpark/ and the broader country context at skipowd.tv/location/sweden/.
Terrain, snow, and seasons
Kläppen sits on rounded Scandinavian terrain rather than alpine peaks, so the vertical is modest by Alps or Rockies standards—but that’s an asset for park riding. The topography provides broad benches and consistent fall line, which make speed reads predictable and lapping efficient. Maritime-continental winters bring frequent cold snaps and manageable winds; between systems, grooming keeps takeoffs crisp and edges biting. When temperatures swing, the build team adjusts lips and reshapes landings to protect speed and safety.
The practical park window typically runs from mid-December into March or April, with the most durable surfaces in January and February when daytime temps hold winter. As daylight stretches into March, you’ll find blue-window filming days and forgiving afternoon landings while shaded aspects stay cold. A unique Kläppen twist is the resort’s saved-snow “autumn park,” which has opened as early as October on select years—useful for teams and crews who want real rail mileage months before most European parks are online. Day to day, expect rapid resets after small refills and wind-buffed hardpack that rides cleanly on rails when the sky clears.
Park infrastructure and events
The core on-snow offering is tiered. The Junior Snowpark mirrors “real” park shapes at kid- and learner-friendly scale; the Blue Line steps up with medium features that reward line choice and clean basics; and the flagship National Arena Kläppen Snowpark carries red and black lines designed to FIS-level standards. When snow and staffing align, the National Arena brings out a full contest palette—multi-hit jump lines, a big-air feature, dense jib sets, and, for championship weeks, a halfpipe built specifically for the event period. The layout is meant for rhythm: choose a two- or three-feature circuit and lap for volume, then step to full-length lines as light and confidence build.
Event pedigree is current and visible. Kläppen regularly hosts Sweden’s national freeski and snowboard championships (SM) with slopestyle, big air and halfpipe on the program, and publishes operational notes when course builds affect public access. The venue also appears on the national slopestyle tour calendar in typical seasons. In spring, the park has been the canvas for culture-defining invitational sessions and film weeks, drawing an international cast when conditions allow. The common thread is consistency: a shaping crew that treats the park like a sport venue first, with daily tweaks that keep speed honest and landings safe.
Access, logistics, and on-mountain flow
Getting to Kläppen is straightforward by Scandinavian standards. The resort is the first major stop as you enter Sälenfjällen from the south, with a road approach that favors buses and private cars. If you’re flying, Sälen/Scandinavian Mountains Airport (IATA: SCR) sits about 45 minutes away by transfer, with seasonal flights and organized shuttles linking the runway to the Sälen resorts. The resort’s “Travel to Kläppen” pages consolidate driving distances from Stockholm, Gothenburg and Malmö, and outline airport options and transfers for winter weeks.
On snow, flow is about rhythm and windows. Start most days warming up on smaller or medium features to check speed and lens tints, then slot repetitions on a compact circuit before expanding to full lines. When temperatures swing or winds rise, follow the crew’s rebuild notes at the park entrance and be ready to pivot toward rail mileage while jump lips set. During national-event weeks, the National Arena may run with training blocks or closures—use mornings in the Blue Line or Junior zones and slide into the pro lines later when the schedule opens. If you’re mixing family laps with trick work, the park’s proximity to main lifts keeps meet-ups easy.
Local culture, safety, and etiquette
Kläppen’s freestyle culture is progression-first and professional. Park etiquette is non-negotiable: inspect features, call your drop, hold a predictable line, and clear landings and knuckles immediately so the lane keeps moving. Give shapers and patrollers space when they’re working, and respect rope lines and course closures around event builds—those protect both public riders and athletes. Helmets are standard; many crews add back protectors for jump laps. On colder weeks, manage batteries and skin exposure so sessions stay crisp rather than rushed.
The off-snow piece matters too. The Kläppen Arena runs airbags, trampolines and a dry-slope railpark in the bare-ground seasons, turning summer and autumn into legitimate training windows. Camps based around the Arena let younger riders learn safe approach speeds and air awareness before moving onto snow—one reason Sweden’s pipeline to national teams runs through this valley. In winter, you’ll see the same discipline on-hill: clear signage, posted speed checks, and staged rebuilds that privilege safe repetition over spectacle.
Best time to go and how to plan
For the most reliable park surfaces, aim for late January through early March. That window typically delivers crisp mornings, stable jump speed, and repeated rebuilds that keep rails fresh. March adds longer light and bluebird film days while shaded aspects hold winter; plan shorter, focused sets with warm-up breaks when the mercury drops so pop and timing stay sharp. If you’re event-curious, align with the SM championship week for spectator energy—just expect footprint changes on the National Arena and plan your riding around the published schedule.
Build your kit for repetition and cold. Two goggle lenses, low-fluoro or all-temp wax for variable hardpack, and spare gloves keep sessions on track. Start each morning by checking the resort’s snowpark page for which lines are open, and keep an eye on travel advisories if you’re driving up for the weekend. For flyers, book transfers from SCR in advance on peak weeks. If you’re splitting time across Sweden, Kläppen pairs neatly with city-park nights around Stockholm earlier or later in the season and with Lapland missions when you want colder snow but less park focus.
Why freeskiers care
Because Kläppen Snowpark is engineered for progression. You get long, continuous lines on broad benches, a shaping program that treats speed and safety as performance factors, an event calendar that proves the venue on the national stage, and a rare off-season training hub with airbags and trampolines. Add simple access via Sälen’s airport and road network and a culture that rewards etiquette and craft, and Kläppen becomes a high-value base for anyone serious about learning, filming, or peaking for competition season.
Alpina Watches
Brand overview and significance
Alpina Watches is a historic Swiss watch manufacturer founded in 1883 and long associated with the culture of alpinism. The company’s emblem—a red triangle—echoes the alpine peaks that shaped its identity and product philosophy. While Alpina designs timepieces for aviation, diving, and everyday wear, the brand’s strongest lifestyle link is to the mountains, where durability, legibility, and reliability matter most to skiers, mountaineers, and guides. In recent years, Alpina has become visible in competitive freeskiing as the Official Timekeeper of the Freeride World Tour, aligning the company with big-mountain venues where accurate timing and rugged gear are non-negotiable for athletes and organizers alike. For a ski audience, Alpina is not a ski equipment maker; it is a watchmaker whose sports watches are engineered for alpine environments and embraced by people who live around snow, altitude, and weather.
Product lines and key technologies
Alpina structures its catalog around four pillars that mirror outdoor pursuits: Alpiner (mountain), Startimer (pilot), Seastrong (diving), and Heritage (archival designs). For skiers and mountain town life, the Alpiner family is the most relevant. It carries forward the brand’s “Alpina 4” concept introduced in 1938: a sports watch should be antimagnetic, shock-resistant, water-resistant, and made of stainless steel. Modern Alpiner references typically feature robust steel cases, screw-down crowns in many models, and sapphire crystals for scratch resistance. Depending on the model, movements are either automatic mechanical or quartz, with options such as GMT second time zones, date windows, and chronographs that are useful for travel and training.
Beyond the Alpiner, Startimer pilot watches prioritize large, high-contrast dials and oversized numerals that remain readable in flat light—useful for winter conditions. Seastrong diver models emphasize water resistance and unidirectional bezels; while designed for the sea, their build quality and lume also translate well to the demands of winter, including sleet, spray, and cold. Heritage pieces revisit early- and mid-20th-century Alpina designs with modern materials, offering a dressier option for après without sacrificing practicality.
Ride feel: who it’s for (terrains & use-cases)
Think of Alpina as a gear choice for skiers who want a reliable, analog tool that can handle daily resort laps, road trips over mountain passes, and the occasional hike-to line. The Alpiner range suits all-mountain skiers who prize clarity and toughness: strong lume for pre-dawn starts, dials that remain readable in snowfall, and bracelets or straps that tolerate temperature swings. Freeride-oriented skiers and event staff who spend long days outside may gravitate to models with screw-down crowns and solid gaskets for added security in wet, cold environments. Travelers chasing storms will appreciate GMT options for crossing time zones, while coaches and media might prefer chronographs for timing runs or transfers.
If you split your year between big mountain objectives and city life, Alpina’s aesthetic is understated enough to move from lift line to meeting. The watches are not instruments for avalanche forecasting or navigation; think of them as durable companions that complement beacons, maps, and GPS devices rather than replacing them. Their “ride feel” is confidence-inspiring simplicity: large, legible markers; a tactile crown; and cases that shrug off the knocks of gear bags, chairlifts, and parking-lot tune-ups.
Team presence, competitions, and reputation
Alpina’s watchmaking reputation rests on practical sports durability and a century-plus of mountain-influenced design. In skiing, the brand’s visibility is anchored by its role as Official Timekeeper of the Freeride World Tour, a global big-mountain series where run windows, start-gate intervals, and safety logistics depend on precise timing across changing weather. That partnership has placed Alpina on banners, bibs, and broadcast clocks from the Alps to North America, reinforcing its alignment with freeride culture. Beyond elite events, Alpina has supported endurance and mountain sports more broadly, which resonates with skiers who train year-round and value purpose-built gear.
Geography and hubs (heritage, testing, venues)
Alpina is based in the Canton of Geneva, Switzerland, with modern manufacturing and assembly complementing the brand’s historic roots in Swiss watchmaking. Its mountain DNA derives from the Alps, and the brand deliberately tests its products in real outdoor conditions—altitude, cold, moisture, and impact—characteristic of alpine winters. The European Alps remain Alpina’s cultural touchstone and a natural proving ground: storm days, freeze-thaw cycles, long gondola rides, and quick weather shifts that challenge both watches and riders. Geneva’s proximity to these ranges helps keep product feedback loops short between enthusiasts, athletes, and the workshop.
Construction, durability, and sustainability
Core Alpina sports models emphasize stainless-steel construction, robust case sealing, and sapphire crystals. Antimagnetic protection helps maintain accuracy around electronics commonly carried by skiers—phones, action cameras, and radio gear—while shock resistance supports daily knocks from poles, boots, and chairlift bars. Water resistance varies by model, but many Alpiner and pilot pieces are built for everyday exposure to snow and slush. Mechanical movements are designed to be serviced, extending product lifespans when owners follow maintenance intervals; quartz models minimize upkeep for users who prioritize grab-and-go practicality. Straps range from steel bracelets to rubber and leather; for winter, rubber and metal excel when wet, while leather is better reserved for après.
From a sustainability standpoint, the most relevant signal is serviceability and longevity: a mechanical watch that can be maintained over decades is inherently less disposable than short-cycle electronics. Alpina also offers battery-powered options for buyers seeking lower cost of ownership and precise timekeeping in harsh conditions. Either path fits a “buy once, cry once” gear philosophy common in mountain communities.
How to choose within the lineup
All-mountain daily driver: Look to the Alpiner three-hand models for a clean dial, date, and solid water resistance. Prioritize a screw-down crown and a bracelet or rubber strap if you spend a lot of time in wet snow or spring corn. A dark dial with large lume plots reads best in flat light.
Freeride and travel: A GMT within the Alpiner or Startimer families helps you track local time and home time during storm chases. If you’re frequently around baggage handlers, camera gear, or snowmobiles, consider a model with extra crown guards and a slightly thicker case for impact tolerance.
Coaches, media, and gearheads: Chronographs provide run timing and interval tracking. Ensure the pushers are easy to operate with thin gloves, and verify water resistance if you’ll be working in heavy snowfall. For pure set-and-forget reliability in bitter cold, quartz references remain a strong choice.
Après and office: Heritage pieces keep the alpine spirit in a dressier package. If you wear cuffs or midlayers, check case thickness and lug-to-lug length for comfort under clothing.
Why riders care
Skiers choose Alpina because the brand builds straightforward, mountain-ready watches that complement a life organized around weather windows, first chairs, and early starts. The designs are readable in storm light, tough enough for everyday resort use, and versatile enough to carry into travel days and town nights. The company’s alpine heritage is more than a logo—it guides decisions about cases, crowns, crystals, and dials that must work when temperatures drop and visibility fades. For the ski community, Alpina offers a practical, long-lived tool that fits naturally into all-mountain and freeride lifestyles, reinforced by its role in major big-mountain competitions and a century of watchmaking shaped by the peaks themselves.
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