The World Rookie Fest has long been a breeding ground for tomorrow’s snowboard stars. Many of the invited riders in this year’s X Games in Tignes, including Peetu Piiroinen, Stale Sandbech and Gjermund Braaten, once stood atop the podium at the World Rookie Fest and have since become some of the best riders in the world.

Here’s a little look at some of these riders’ experiences at the X Games including some archive footage of them bossing the World Rookie Fest a few years back. This year’s World Rookie Finals are going down in Ischgl more or less as we type and will see the 2013 champion crowned.

Young British ripper Rowan Coultas has had a really strong season competing on the tour this year and is currently sitting in 14th place in the overall rankings – a pretty incredible feat considering how sick some of the young, overwhelmingly Scandinavian, riders are that sit above him.