The holiday season is a time of gathering with loved ones, but it also means that it’s time to start getting excited for one of the greatest winter sports competitions in the world: the X Games! This year’s edition will take place from January 21-23, 2022 at Buttermilk Mountain in Aspen, Colorado, and some of the greatest athletes in their respective sports are going to be there to compete for the gold. They’ll all be gunning for medals in 14 different disciplines from Big Air to Snowboard SuperPipe to Knuckle Huck, and you won’t want to miss a moment.

Read on for more of what you can expect at this year’s edition!

How to Watch the Games

The X Games long partnership with ESPN continues this year. We’re slated to have 13.5 hours of live competition coming your way between ESPN and ABC, and the action should be nonstop. As always, the Games encourages fans to also follow the fun and competition on social media, with @XGames as the handle to track on all platforms.

Also, if you’re in the area or are planning to travel to Aspen, admission to the X Games is free for all ages with proof of vaccination. In further keeping with COVID protocols, guests under age 11 who are not vaccinated may attend if they bring along a vaccinated adult AND wear a properly fitted face mask at all times while on the premises. Furthermore, all guests, regardless of vaccination status, must wear masks when using any indoor facility at the Games.

Athletes to Watch

The best part of the X-Games is that it brings all of the world’s elite talent to one place. With the Olympics on the horizon shortly afterwards, it’s hard to know for sure who will definitely compete, but the best athletes in the world have all been invited. Fans will be spoiled with the amount of skill and courage on display, but here are some of the invited athletes who you might want to keep a special eye on in their respective events.

• Shaun White: It’s hard to believe that the long-haired “Flying Tomato” who burst onto the scene winning gold at the 2006 Winter Olympics is now one of the elder statesmen of snowboarding. He’s slated to be in Aspen shortly before his expected swan song at the Beijing Olympics, so don’t miss him!
• Chloe Kim: It seems as though Chloe has been dominating competition forever, but that’s really because she started when she was so young – winning her first X Games medal when she was just 13 years old. Fresh off her first year studying at Princeton, Chloe is sure to continue showing the grace and power that have been her trademark so far.
• Nick Goepper: A freestyle skier originally from Indiana, Goepper has been an X Games (and Olympic) mainstay for a decade now. He’ll hope to defend last year’s gold in Slopestyle against some fearsome competition including his countrymen Mac Forehand and Alex Hall, plus Max Moffatt of Canada and Norwegian Birk Ruud.
• Eileen Gu: A native of San Francisco who competes for China, Gu saw immediate success in 2021 - her first year of senior skiing competition. She won two golds and a bronze at last year’s X Games, and then again at the 2021 World Championships. Look for her to be a real contender in the Superpipe, Big Air and Slopestyle events.

Events to Watch

• Knuckle Huck: Perhaps the one X Games event that hasn’t quite gone mainstream yet, Knuckle Huck still showcases the athleticism and creativity of athletes like none other. Contestants use the curved part of a jump (the “knuckle”) – between the flat tabletop and the steeper landing portion – to turn tricks that simply aren’t possible anywhere else on the mountain.
• Big Air: An event that both skiers and snowboarders compete in, Big Air is one of the most popular events every single year. Riders turn massive tricks at incredible heights, thrilling the crowd below them.
• Slopestyle: Another event that both skiers and snowboarders ride in, Slopestyle is a single competitor heading down a course that features terrain park features. They’re scored based on originality and quality of tricks, so it’s a great chance to watch the best dip into their bags of tricks.

The 2022 X Games are shaping up to be the most exciting and popular edition so far, especially with the Olympics just around the corner. Set a calendar reminder, and make sure that you tune in to join the fun!