Moguls skier Cooper Woods stoked by silver place, a 'dream come true'

"It's the complete opposite [to home], it's dark and cold, you might be lucky to see sun at the start of the year, [and] today is warm, it's -3 degrees Celcius, it's a balmy day," the 23-year-old professional Australian mogul skier said.

After competing alongside some of the world's best freestyle mogul skiers at the birthplace of freestyle skiing in America, Waterville Valley, New Hampshire, Woods scored silver with an impressive 81.04 points in the final of the Moguls World Cup, just shy of Japan's Ikuma Horishima winning gold with a score of 85.84.

"It was a dream come true, and I've been close so many times, so much weight off my chest and shoulders. A lot of sacrifice to make that change just for that podium and now I've had the taste for it, it's all I want," he said.

The sport of moguls consists of skiing down a steep, marked path, across a series of bumps, keeping a fast pace, while achieving technical aerial maneuvers, which Woods said was helped by his trusty 172cm skinny blue and gold ID one skis.

During the 2022 Winter Olympic Games in Beijing, Woods represented Australia where he came sixth. He had also qualified for finals in every event this season, the podium placing evidence of his dedication to the sport.

He shared how his medal was handcrafted by locals to the area, and said while it was an interesting way to celebrate a life accomplishment, he chuckled at the idea of it being used as an "excellent beer coaster".

"The next [Winter] Olympics are in 2026 in Milan, Cortina, that's the goal to win that, always the plan to get on the box," he said.