Sven Thorgren’s Rip Off Session 2026: The best day of the season
Sven Thorgren brought snowboarding back to its roots at Kläppen. Here's what went down at the Rip Off Session 2026.
There's a certain kind of snowboard event that gets talked about for years. Not because of the prize money or the points, but because of what it felt like to be there. The Rip Off Session is that kind of event.
Created and hosted by Dope Rider and Swedish snowboard icon Sven Thorgren at Kläppen, one of the best snowboard resorts in Sweden, this year's edition had a bigger set up, more riders and an even better atmosphere. Around 25 of the world’s top snowboarders headed to the park for a weekend that had nothing to do with qualification standings and everything to do with riding with style - and having a blast doing it.
When describing Rip Off Session, Sven says its, “about bringing back the vibe of how I think a snowboard contest should look like. Where you can really feel that everyone involved in the event truly loves snowboarding. Riders sharing the spotlight, and not because of their ranking, but because they love what they do. No pressure - it’s about having fun together.”. Whether you’re taking part or enjoying from the side, this event feels less like a competition and more like the best sesh of the season.
Three disciplines, one new twist
The competition consists of three parts: Best Style, Best Trick and Highest Air. New this year was the Lip Off Session. A brand new edition to the event, a banked slalom competition taking place at and in the halfpipe.
Past editions have pulled names like Ståle Sandbech, Torgeir Bergrem, Kokomo Murase, Dusty Henricksen, Mons Roisland, Miyabi Onitsuka and Sage Kotsenburg; riders who don't need another contest on their calendar, but show up anyway because the session is worth it.
The 2026 edition was no different. Thorgren himself set the tone early with a massive back rodeo 7 nosegrab over the entire pyramid feature - the kind of hit that racked up views well beyond the Kläppen crowd and captured exactly what the session is about: going big, with style, under the fireworks.
Krikhus and Brookes take the crown
Norway's Øyvind Krikhus took the overall men's title, and earned it the hard way. His Switch Backside Rodeo 16 melon, a snowboard trick that had never been done before, gave the crowd one of the loudest moments of the night and locked up Best Trick on top of his overall win. On the women's side, Mia Brookes matched that dominance completely, sweeping both Best Trick and the overall title.
The style awards went to two riders who know how to own a feature: Halldór Helgason took Men's Best Style, and Tess Coady claimed the women's equivalent. Highest Air on the women's side went to Hanna Karrer and Mille Kårström, who weren't shy about sending it into the Swedish sky.
By the time the awards ceremony rolled around, Kläppen had seen one of the strongest single-session lineups of the season - and a first-ever trick to close it out.
Reflecting on this years event, Sven said: “It’s fantastic to see new kids alongside legends like Halldór Helgason, sharing the spotlight through style, best trick, and highest air. I’m excited to grow this thing and keep bringing it back year after year!”.
What Thorgren has built at Kläppen is a reminder of why we got on the board in the first place. Rip Off Sessions thrives on the simple idea that snowboarding is more fun when the best riders in the world are given a setup, a crowd, and the freedom to figure out the rest themselves. No scripts. No commentary booth explaining what you just saw. Just a park under the lights in central Sweden, a first-ever trick going down in front of a crowd that knew exactly what they'd witnessed, and an after-party that nobody was in a hurry to leave.
Some things you can't rip off. This is one of them.
Photos by Sami Tuoriniemi (@sami_tuoriniemi)