Whitefish skier set to compete in Switzerland

Whitefish High School junior Gardner Dominick has been invited to compete in the 2021 Freeride Junior World Championships, held March 30 through April 3 in Verbier, Switzerland.

Dominick, 17, was invited to attend after finishing an abbreviated 2021 season ranked 14th in North America and spending most of the season in the top five. He ended his season with a third place finish at Grand Targhee Junior Regional on March 12-14.

There are about 30 men set to compete in Switzerland. Freeride skiing is a type of skiing which takes place on natural ungroomed terrain and includes deep powder snow and steep runs.

Dominick began the 2020 season by winning the Junior National event at Kicking Horse and the Junior Regional in Big Sky, while finishing 2nd in the Junior Regional at Fernie, B.C. The season was cut short due to COVID-19.

Dominick has grown up in Whitefish and for the last eight winters has split his time between here and Big Sky spending a lot of time on the snow. He first put on skis at Whitefish Mountain Resort before he turned age 2, and began competing as a racer and in slopestyle events at age 6.

Dominick competed in his first freeride competition at age 10 in Big Sky at the Headwaters Spring Run-off. Then he finished sixth in the U12 North American Championships at age 11 after qualifying for Norams by winning the Jeep Jr. Freeski Event at Kicking Horse Mountain Resort in British Columbia, Canada. He continued to race in the Northern Division Youth Ski League and compete in International Freeski Association events each year until he turned 14, when he turned to freeride full time.