Checking In With WeiTien Ho

The 2025 Freeride World Tour (FWT) kicked off on Friday, January 17th in Baqueira Beret, Spain. Out of the stacked roster of skiers and snowboarders competing, one of the many to watch was Whistler, B.C.-based freeskier and Peak Performance athlete WeiTien Ho. After finishing 13th on last year’s FWT, just below the cut for FWT Finals, WeiTien was ultimately granted a wildcard spot for this winter’s Tour, and was looking forward to the opportunity. But this past fall, his plans and aspirations appeared to be upended after he sustained an injury that would put most skiers on the shelf for an extended period of time. But WeiTien is not most skiers. Armed with a determined, focused and positive mentality, WeiTien persevered through a rigorous physical and mental recovery process, and defied the odds by standing in the start gate in Spain. A few weeks prior to the event, we had to opportunity to converse with him about what he went through, and the valuable learning process that came with it.

Hey WeiTien. What was your injury, and how did you sustain it?

Back in October, I broke my fibula on a trampoline. I got surgery on it and now have a plate and five screws in it.

How did you take the news when you received the diagnosis, and how did your recent wildcard into the FWT play into your rehabilitation plans?

When I first received the news it was pretty hard for me to hear. A thousand things ran through my mind; it felt like it put a wrench through all my plans and aspirations. And then before I got surgery, the surgeon told me I wouldn’t be able to ski before mid-January, which is when the first FWT stop is. I had big hopes and goals for this season and in that moment it felt like they all got thrown out the window. However a few days after, despite what the surgeon said, I had hope that I’d be back sooner. I latched onto that hope, grew it into confidence that I would be back sooner than people thought, and did my best to accept everything that had already happened and disregard all that was out of my control. This allowed me to put all of my focus into what I could do regardless of my situation. I used my goal of coming back for the first FWT stop as fire to motivate me throughout my rehab.

What was your rehab time to get back onto skis? And tell us about the physical and mental aspects of your recovery. 

I broke my fibula on October 15th, got surgery on the 16th, and had my first day on skis December 21st. There was ups and downs throughout the process, as there always is, but I kept the bigger picture in mind and no matter what, always focused on what I could do, not what I couldn’t. It was a constant game, playing with the fine line of trying to push exactly the right amount to progress as quickly as possible, but also not overdo it to the point where I move backwards or become stagnant. I didn’t want to rush things, I wanted to give my ankle the time it needed to heal fully and properly, but also I didn’t have a ton of time before the season kicked off. It was frustrating a lot of the time, but I grew to see this injury as an opportunity to better myself overall and gain experience. I could not be happier to be back skiing and can’t remember a time when I enjoyed skiing this much.

With only a few weeks away from the first stop, how are you feeling heading into FWT?

One of the hardest pills to swallow ever since the beginning of my injury was the fact that, no matter what, I wouldn’t be as prepared as I would’ve wanted or hoped for. I am doing my best to accept that, and change my perspective to focusing on just being as best prepared as I can be. I had set the goal of being in the start gate for the first stop, but I wasn’t sure if I was being delusional or overly optimistic. I am proud of my rehab process and genuinely just so happy to be back on skis and grateful to be heading to the first comp. It’s not the ideal situation I was hoping for, I am lacking time on skis, but I am mentally prepared and ready to give it my best shot. It’s the first comp too, so I will progress throughout the season [Editor’s Note: WeiTien placed 6th at the first stop].

Photo by Jeremy Bernard / Freeride World Tour

What do you want to share with other skiers/athletes who might be dealing with similar setbacks?

I don’t want to act like I went through a super big injury with a crazy complicated recovery, but I do feel I learned a fair bit by simply not having things go my way. The main takeaways I have are, as quickly as possible, focus on what’s ahead, not what has already happened. It’s not necessarily easy, but I tried to not disregard what had happened, learn and appreciate the experience, but not dwell on it, and focus on moving forward. I also did my best to put as much of my focus into what I could do in my situation not what I couldn’t, which was something that I think really helped me continue to move forward and still figure out ways to progress.

Who do you want to thank from a support standpoint?

Honestly there’s so many people in my corner. My friends, my family, my girlfriend, who have all helped me along my recovery process. I am immensely grateful to the people around me, who I would not have recovered as quickly and well as I did without. I do want to highlight my parents of course, who took care of me from the very beginning; just making life easier for me and making sure I had everything I needed to recover. As well as The Movement Lab in Whistler where my physiotherapist, Alex Fell, and strength coach Bryan Katz ensured I was doing the right things at the right time and progressing wisely.

Photo by Jeremy Bernard / Freeride World Tour

What has you excited for the 2025 FWT?

I am excited to be on the big stage of freeride competition where the stakes are high. Also just traveling and competing with a bunch of wonderful people who ski and snowboard really well.

Photo by Olli Dickerson

To follow WeiTien’s journey on the Freeride World Tour, follow @weitien_ho and @freerideworldtour.