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The Toyo Tires Yukon Slopestyle/Big Air Canada Cup is returning to Mount Sima.

The event will run from Nov. 30 to Dec. 4.

Training sessions will be held on Nov. 30 and Dec. 1.

The Big Air competition will be Dec. 2 with the finals taking place in the evening.

Slopestyle qualification will be on Dec. 3 and the finals will be held on Dec. 4.

According to Freestyle Yukon executive director Stephanie Robertson, it was a regular event prior to COVID-19. This will be the fifth Canada Cup in the Yukon.

鈥淚t鈥檚 just under Nor-Am, which is just under World Cup, so still amateur, but provincial-level amateur athletes, up and comers,鈥� explained Robertson.

鈥淲e have capped it at 85 and so we have five local athletes competing and hopefully 80 other athletes. Registration is starting to fill up.鈥� About 62 freestylers are registered so far.

Robertson said they are expecting athletes 鈥渇rom all over Canada, so I know Nova Scotia鈥檚 sending a team, Ontario I think is sending two teams. Quebec has one team, Alberta might be three teams, a couple from B.C.鈥�

Robertson said the local skiers are looking pretty competitive.

鈥淭hey鈥檝e been practicing all summer and they鈥檙e on the airbag jump this weekend I believe and then they start pre-season the week after, so they鈥檙e pretty pumped. A couple of them went and skied on the glacier this summer in Whistler with some of the Olympians, trained hard and are excited.鈥�

Robertson said there鈥檚 a camp called Momentum Camp up on the glacier.

鈥淚t鈥檚 a busy, busy place and 鈥� people from all over the world go.鈥�

Jason McKay and Jacob Robertson were the lucky ones who trained on the glacier at Whistler.

鈥淭hey鈥檙e pretty excited and pretty stoked to ski with the 鈥� Olympians,鈥� said Robertson.

鈥淚t was really cool, because you were on the highest mountain around, with these crazy big jumps and rails and all the pro athletes are coaching you,鈥� described Jacob Robertson, Stephanie鈥檚 son. 鈥淭hat was a super fun and inspiring experience.鈥�

鈥淭here was all the pros, like James Woods, Alex Hall, Etienne (Geoffrey-Gagnon) was there. That was really cool. And I met a lot of people that I look up to.鈥�

鈥淚 was working on qualifying some flips and just improving my skiing skills. It was pretty good. It was super fun and all the coaches knew exactly how to teach you 鈥� it was just a really good way to get coached and fast-track my progression.鈥�

Stephanie Robertson said there are other local athletes competing in the Canada Cup as well.

鈥淲e have Alex Wilson, who鈥檚 on the depth team in the Yukon, as well as Isaac Maddocks and Charlie Fidler, along with the other two and they鈥檙e all pretty awesome. They鈥檙e definitely doing more tricks than I would.

鈥淎 couple of them have been on the team for five years, not the dev (development) team, but the Yukon Freestyle team, and others have been on for a couple of years but they鈥檙e dedicated to training all year round, train five days a week, so pretty dedicated.鈥�

All five local athletes will be taking on slopestyle and big air.

鈥淚鈥檓 a little bit nervous because it鈥檚 a higher competition level than I鈥檝e been doing but I鈥檓 also super excited because I kind of have the advantage because it鈥檚 my local (hill) and I鈥檒l have a week or two more to train on it than everyone else,鈥� related Jacob Robertson.

The young lad doesn鈥檛 have any expectations for himself.

鈥淚 don鈥檛 know what to expect, really.

鈥淵esterday (Sunday) was our first day on snow and that went good but hopefully I do good in the Canada Cup and competitions to come.鈥�

The Big Air event will have qualifiers during the day and the finals under the lights in the evening. There will also be a bonfire with smokies and hot dogs.

鈥淚 think we鈥檙e putting on a beer gardens as well with Sima, so people can come out and watch. I鈥檓 hoping a bunch of people from the communities and locals come out and watch and cheer on our athletes and, just sort of bring awareness to the sport,鈥� said Robertson.

The big air competition lifts off from 6 to 8 p.m. The beer gardens, located at the Big Air site, open at 4 p.m.

Robertson said national team athlete Geoffrey-Gagnon will be there as well. 鈥淗e鈥檚 helping coach as well.鈥�

Geoffrey-Gagnon was in a World Cup competition at Stabaier Glacier in Austria, about 45 minutes from Innsbruck.

鈥淗e鈥檒l be back at the end of the month to help coach for a month or two,鈥� said Robertson.

鈥淲e are very excited to be hosting the Canada Cup again,鈥� added Robertson. 鈥淭his event attracts some of the best up-and-coming freestyle skiers in the country and we can鈥檛 wait to show them how great the Yukon and Mount Sima are.鈥�