WITH just 10 days to go until the opening ceremony in Beijing, the Australian Winter Olympic Team has been announced, with our third largest team and a record percentage of women representing Australia in China.
The Australian Olympic Committee has announced 44 athletes to compete across 10 disciplines, with 23 women and 21 men.
Mount Buller trained snowboarder Scotty James and mogul skier Jakara Anthony, who've both enjoyed stellar recent form, will both compete for Australia.
Chef de Mission of the Australian Olympic Team for Beijing Geoff Lipshut celebrated the achievements of the athletes in realising their Olympic dream.
"Congratulations to all 44 athletes selected for the Australian Winter Olympic Team for Beijing," Mr Lipshut said.
"All of these athletes have shown not just remarkable skill and tenacity in achieving their Olympic qualification on the snow and ice, but incredible resilience to overcome the challenges the pandemic has posed to them throughout this Olympic cycle.
"To make it to the starting line is a true achievement and I want to pay credit to all of these athletes.
"I also want to pay tribute to those athletes who may not have qualified due to the challenges of the pandemic – your contribution to your sport, your teammates and this team will not be forgotten."
Jakara Anthony will take to the slopes for qualifying on Thursday, February 3 at 9pm AEDT, and again for finals on Sunday, February 6 from 9pm AEDT.
Scotty James will take on qualifiers for the snowboard halfpipe on Wednesday, February 9 at 3:30pm AEDT, and again for finals on Friday, February 11 at 12:30pm AEDT.
Coverage will stream 24/7 on channel Seven Plus.
Scotty will head to the Beijing Olympic Winter Games full of confidence, after winning gold in the halfpipe at the X–Games in Aspen, USA.
The 27–year–old Mount Buller trained snowboarder recorded his fourth X–Games victory with a number of impressive runs in the Aspen halfpipe, to finish ahead of Japanese riders Ayumu Hirano in second place, with his younger brother Kaishu Hirano in third.
James is Australia's most successful male snowboarder to date.
The Olympic bronze medallist in 2018 has a collection of X Games medals (4 gold, 2 silver, 1 bronze), eleven FIS World Cup medals (6 gold, 4 silver, 1 bronze) and four World Championship medals, including three gold.
Jakara wrapped up her Olympic qualification with a silver medal at the World Cup event in Deer Valley, USA, her eighth medal of the season.
She is currently ranked third in the women's moguls World Cup standings, and first in the overall mogul World Cup standings, which also includes results from the dual mogul discipline.
"I am really happy with how this event has gone, I really progressed in certain aspects of my skiing and jumping in my four days here and I couldn't have asked for much more," said the 23–year–old Mount Buller product.
