Tim McChesney, Gen Sasaki, Anna Segal along side with amateurs from Japan and around the world are ready to kick off Niseko Shootout ProAM.
A total of 22 professional and amateur athlete-photographer teams will take to the mountains in and around Shiribeshi region between January 9-12, day and night with the aim of capturing the best photo of the period, with ¥200,000 up for grabs.
Contest organiser Winstead Heyward noted with no significant snowfalls in the forecast, we could be looking at a similar comp to last year… teams getting creative with an edge given to local knowledge.
“Conditions wise its a level playing field. Japow doesn’t necessarily define Niseko. This place is magic regardless of snow depth which these teams have a chance to prove. ” Heyward said. “Fingers crossed for some fresh snow, though. Even small forecasted snow can turn big here and it’s snowing right now!”
“Stoked to see more local Japanese teams come out and looking forward to the level of competition this year’s line up offers!”
Pro Teams
| TEAM SPONSOR | ATHLETE | PHOTOGRAPHER |
|---|---|---|
| Oyuki Japan | Tim McChesney | Nolan Yoshiaki Isozaki |
| Oyuki Japan | Anna Segal | Nolan Yoshiaki Isozaki |
| Niseko Grand Hirafu | Gen Sasaki | Aaron Jamieson |
| DAYZE | Yusaku Horii | Junichiro Watanabe |
| K2 Snowboarding | Daisuke Watanabe | Dany kean |
| Yuki Kamui, Iwanai Resort | Haley Guttin | Kyler Chambers |
| Glen Claydon Photography (DNS) | Jaimi French | Glen Claydon |
Amateur Teams
| TEAM SPONSOR | ATHLETE | PHOTOGRAPHER |
|---|---|---|
| FinnAir | Freddie Mills | Nick Savage |
| Independent | Theo Morton | Shotaro Koyama |
| Independent | James Winfield | Teddy Laycock |
| Independent | Ryu Atobe | Tanner Dobbins |
| Independent | Aron Hayes | Tomasz Ustupski |
| SnowPlus Snowsports | Eden Gao | Eason Kuo |
| Dragon Alliance | Samuel Nelson | Neil McNair |
| Independent | Robert Buchanan | Lukas Eibenstein |
| Independent | George Treble | Jonas Eibenstein |
| Hanazono Niseko | Jimi Oertli | Toshi Pander |
| Independent | Patrick Schuster | Markus Paul |
| Yama Plus | Evan Wilcox | Toshi Pander |
| Niseko Black Snowsports | Simon Pervez | Justin Owers |
| Niseko Black Snowsports | Manuel Ruiz De Somavia | Toni Rodriguez |
| Niseko Black Snowsports | Juan Berthold | Bianca Peralta |
Voting & judging
ProAM Judges’ Choice Winners: ¥120,000
ProAM Public Vote Winners: ¥80,000
The public judging will take place over another four days between January 17th and 20th – voting is by liking photos that will be uploaded into the 2019-20 Niseko Shootout ProAM photo album on Niseko Tourism’s Facebook page! Voting ends at 23:59 on Jan 20th! So VOTE!
Winners will be announced on January 21st at the Award Ceremony Party@Rhythm base.
