Simon Dumont to host and showcase some of the country’s best professional and amateur freeskiing athletes

Newry, Maine (March 20, 2012)-X Games gold medalist and world record holder Simon Dumont will host his fourth annual Dumont Cup at his hometown mountain, Sunday River, in Newry, Maine, on March 23-24, 2012. Dumont, along with seven professional freeski athletes, will mentor and compete with amateur skiers on a slopestyle course located in the resort’s Rocking Chair Terrain Park, designed by Dumont himself.

Professional skiers signed up to compete in year’s event include Jossi Wells, Gus Kenworthy, PK Hunder, Torin Wallace, Alexis Godbout, Joss Christenson, and former Dumont Cup winner, Alex Schlopy. Schlopy was the first amateur to ever win the Dumont Cup and has since gone on to cinch a gold medal at the 2011 X Games Big Air event.

The Dumont Cup has quickly gained a reputation for being one of the World’s most prestigious slopestyle contests. It will be featured in the nationally televised Red Bull Signature Series on the NBC Sports Network on April 10, 2012, from 12:30-1:30AM EST (9:30-10:30PM PST) as well as internationally through Dumont Cup event sponsor, Red Bull. http://www.redbullsignatureseries.com

This year, the Association of Freeskiing Professionals (AFP) officially recognized the Dumont Cup’s importance by elevating it from a gold status event to a platinum status event. This is the AFP’s first strictly slopestyle contest to receive such a promotion and will allow amateur and professional freeskiers the ability to compete at the highest level possible.

“The Dumont Cup has exceeded all of my expectations,” says Dumont. “It’s incredible that in the last four years this went from a contest we started to help skiers from New England get noticed to becoming the first slopestyle contest to get elevated to platinum by the AFP. I’m honored that the ski community would embrace this event so much.”

$25,000 in cash and prizes are up for grabs for the top eight finishers. Amateur skiers will also have the opportunity to score some great prizes from Dumont Cup sponsors.

Qualifiers will be held in two sessions on Friday, March 23 from 10AM until 4:30PM The top 40 amateurs will advance to the semi-finals on Saturday, March 24.

During the semi-finals and finals, professional, and amateur skiers compete side-by-side. Judges determine the top three overall winners as well as a stand-out amateur from the two-day competition.

For additional information on the 4th Annual Dumont Cup, please see www.dumontcup.com or www.sundayriver.com . Please note that the event schedule is subject to change.

Official sponsors of Simon Dumont and the Dumont Cup are: Red Bull, Target, Oakley, Nike 6.0, Sunday River, HEAD, Toyota, Giro, Rockwell, Seshn, Empire Attire, and Kicker.

About Sunday River – A true four-season destination, Sunday River offers eight interconnected peaks of world-class skiing and snowboarding, two Grand Resort Hotels and golf at the highly acclaimed Sunday River Golf Club. Sunday River is a member of the Boyne USA Resorts family of resorts and attractions and is located in Newry, Maine amidst the scenic Mahoosuc Range.

About Aura360 – Aura360 specializes in animating client brands through innovative event and media properties and related marketing ventures. Aura360’s services are structured into three operating units; Ownership & Ventures, Client Property Development & Management, and Productions. Allied business 360 Productions provides global video production services. Properties of Aura360 include NBC World of Adventure Sports, The Men’s Health Urbanathlon, The Baja Unlimited, SCORE Baja 1000, Freestyle Grappling Open, and The Dumont Cup. For more information please visit www.aura360.com .