With his eye on an elusive Olympic gold medal in a month's time, snowboard king Scotty James is proving he's the man to beat by leading halfpipe qualification in the last World Cup before the Games.
With his selection for the Milan-Cortina Olympics already assured, James has kept a low profile this season but returned with a bang at Laax in Switzerland, where he has won a record four times including last year.
Looking to test out some new tricks as he chases gold to add to his Olympic silver and bronze medals, the 31-year-old set the bar in qualifying while fellow Australian Valentino Guseli was also in the mix in third spot.
The four-time world champion posted a score of 95.75 with his soaring second run to best Japan's current rankings leader Yuto Totsuka (94.00) and Guseli (87.50).
Defending Olympic champion Ayumu Hirano, who pipped James in Beijing, qualified for the 12-man final in 11th spot, with a best mark of 80.75.
The final will be held on Saturday night (Sunday AM AEDT) while the medal round at the Olympics is set for February 14 (AEDT).
James's "North Star" remains Olympic gold.
"It's fair to say the elephant in the room for me, from an accolade perspective, is for sure I haven't won an Olympic gold medal yet," he told AAP.
"I think I can put myself in the best possible position to make it happen."
Teenage freeskier Daisy Thomas also lined up in Laax in the slopestyle, making a shock return after rupturing her ACL in late November.
It looked like the 18-year-old's hopes of competing in the Olympics, which get underway on February 6 (local time), were wrecked when she crashed her landing in a big air World Cup event in China after qualifying for the final in second spot.
"Forty-seven days ago I ruptured my ACL. Today, I dropped in at a World Cup again," Thomas posted on Instagram.
"I've got a long way left on this journey but this milestone feels pretty damn good. I am so thankful for the support from everyone I've spoken to over the past month and the wonderful people who work with me to be confident in my body's capabilities."
Thomas finished qualification in 26th place with China's Olympic champion Eileen Gu the frontrunner.
Meanwhile, bad weather has forced the cancellation of the moguls World Cup in Waterville in the USA.
Australia's Jakara Anthony and Matt Graham were set to wear the yellow bibs as the overall ranking leaders in the final event before the Olympics.
Dense fog moved into the course area shortly after the beginning of the women's qualification round, significantly reducing visibility.
After an extended delay organisers made the call to cancel competition for the day.
They then decided to change the schedule and run a singles competition in place of the dual moguls World Cup on Friday (local time), which will give skiers a last chance to qualify for the Games.
