James Hamilton (20), Snowboarder
Lives: Albany, North Shore.
Event: A halfpipe is a U-shaped bowl allowing riders to move from one wall to the other by making jumps and performing tricks on each transition.
Halfpipes originated in skateboarding.
Halfpipe snowboarding has been an Olympic sport since 1998.
Background: Hamilton is New Zealand's top male snowboarder and ranked 38th in the world.
He first competed for New Zealand at the 2006 World Youth Games.
He has made the finals of several international events, including the US Open in 2008 and the world championships in 2009.
He became the first New Zealand male snowboarder to achieve a top-three placing in a World Cup event, with a bronze medal in the halfpipe competition in Italy in 2008.
At last year's Winter Games, he struggled to land his tricks and failed to make the semifinals.
He was 16th at the world snowboarding championships in Korea last year.
Chances: Hamilton will be pushing for a place in the final and wants a top-five finish.
The full-time snowboarder also plans to be competing at Sochi in 2014.
Race day: February 17, at Whistler.
