Background
Leskinen was born in 1981 and grew up in Uniontown, Pennsylvania near Seven Springs Mountain Resort and Hidden Valley Ski Resort.
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Kristi Leskinen
Edit ProfileCareer
Kristi was the first woman ever to pull a rodeo 720—two rotations, head pointed to the earth. She was named one of the Twenty Greatest Adventure Sport Athletes of today by Faces Magazine in fall of 2005. She appeared on the cover of Powder magazine"s Photo Annual in 2004.
She seemed to master every sport she came in contact with.
Foreign example, she learned to pole vault two weeks before Regional’s her senior year of high school and she ended up setting a school record while qualifying for the State Championships. Moguls did not offer the freedom she craved, so she switched to wakeboarding.
She took second in the United States Wakeboard Nationals and fourth at the World Championship. In 2000, while attending the United States Open, she spotted some pros having a practice session on a rail.
lieutenant was the freedom she always looked for in skiing.
She realized that freeskiing is more challenging than wakeboarding so she chose a career on the snow. In her first United States Open, Leskinen was the only women doing the Big Air event and one of the handful of women participating on the Superpipe. By 2004, the sport had grown and the United States Open had 40 athletes participating in the Superpipe, the largest of its kind in the world.
She took second place.
Leskinen realized that videos reach a bigger audience than a single contest. She started filming all over the world.
In 2005, she took bronze at the Winter X Games as well as a silver at the World Championship in the Halfpipe. In the same year, she placed first at the Gravity Games Halfpipe.
Since that season, she has had many notable performances such as second place in the North American Open in 2008, third place in the European Open in 2008, and second in the Aspen Open in 2009.
Career Highlights
2009 3rd place, Homecoming
2009 5th place, Dew Tour SlopestyleMt Snow, Vermont
2009 2nd place, Aspen Open Slopestyle
2008 3rd place, European Open SlopestyleLaax, Switzerland
2008 2nd place, North American Open
2007 2nd place, Nippon Freeski Open
2005 3rd place, Winter X Games Halfpipe
2005 2nd place, United States Open Halfpipe
2005 1st place, Gravity Games Halfpipe
2004 2nd place, United States Freeskiing Open SuperpipeVail, Colorado
Modeling and Television With her classic high cheekbones and blonde tresses, Leskinen became a pin-up girl in sponsor posters. She was named of the “100 Hottest Women of 2005” by FHM. In early 2009, Leskinen appeared on the show “The Superstars” on American Broadcasting Company.
Leskinen resides in Mammoth Lakes, California. She continues to wakeboard and she dedicates a few weeks a year to ride in Orlando, Florida.
