LJ Henriquez (16)and Lily Dhawornvej (15) are changing the face of snowboarding and the teens just scored their rookie entries to X Games Aspen 2025 the old-fashioned way: They earned it.
At the Street Style Pro X Games qualifier in December, both LJ and Lily had to advance out of the Next X contest just to compete in the main event. No problem. They then beat much more seasoned pros to claim their X Games Aspen Street Style spots.
LJ says the impact of qualifying for X Games hit him immediately: “You ever have one of those moments in your life where you think, ‘Yeah, my life’s gonna be different from here on out’? That’s what those two nights were for me.”
Lily says she knew Next X contests historically have offered X Games opportunities for young amateurs and overlooked riders. But that doesn’t mean she thought qualifying for X Games was realistic. “I went in with no expectations about anything like that,” she says. “It was one big emotional moment after another.”
Both LJ and Lily quickly became fan favorites. LJ’s irrepressible energy pumped up the crowd, while Lily received one of the biggest roars of the night when she laced a 50-50 nollie “tame dog” frontflip. Lily couldn’t decide whether to laugh or cry when her name was announced as Aspen-bound, so she did a little of both. In the men’s main event, LJ led the final until the very last second, and he was HYPED.
In addition to qualifying for X Games, Lily and LJ have a few other things in common: They’re 2024 U.S. Amateur Snowboarding Association (USASA) National Champions in slopestyle, and Lily was named to the U.S. Snowboard Rookie Slopestyle Team in September.
They also represent new demographics in snowboarding. LJ’s father Lenim “Lenny” Henriquez, Sr. is a first-generation Dominican-American; Lily’s father Singkorn “Korney” Dhawornvej is first-generation Thai-American.
LJ is supported by the National Brotherhood of Snowsports (NBS), founded in 1973 “to identify, develop and support athletes of color who will win International and Olympic winter sports competitions representing the United States and to increase participation in winter sports.” Lily is part of Soy Sauce Nation, a community of Asian-American snowboarders with a mission “to create space for underrepresented people and groups by highlighting them through media, producing events and partnering with the best-of brands that believe in diversity, equity and inclusion.”
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Colin Bane 