Aono, the 19-year-old prodigy from Japan, has been definitely turning some heads. He won the men's half pipe FIS World Championships in January and the Asian National Championships this past March. At last year's X-Games in Colorado, Aono made his debut and he went wire-to-wire with Shaun White for the gold medal. During his final run, he performed one of the biggest airs at 16 feet and 2 inches. But in the end, White took the gold.

Aono has five World Cup victories, and when he entered the 2009 Burton New Zealand Open, he was ranked No. 1 in the world.