The stars of professional snowboarding took over Beijing's Bird's Nest a one-night-only aerial display on Saturday. The National Olympic Stadium hosted a competition that was equal parts style and spectacle, and a big crowd watched the snowboarders take their sport to a whole new level.

These days, some of the best winter sports venues aren't born, they're built.

Organizers of the Oakley and Shaun White Air and Style exhibition constructed a snow-covered ramp 50 meters tall. Snowboarders launched themselves from it to showcase how their sport has evolved into more than just a game.

Air & Style 2010

Winter sports used to be held on mountain slopes in North America and Europe, but big time snowboarding has been brought to the people, at the Bird's Nest in Beijing.

It's the 2nd year for the Air and Style event in the capital. Sports gear sponsor Oakley and extreme athlete extraordinaire Shawn White joined forces to bring it back to China. The competition pitted 24 of the world’s top snowboarders against each other in a dramatic and action-packed arena. No worries about cold temperatures here. The extreme skills of these athletes made the fans forget about the weather and are thrilled by the show.

Air & Style 2007

The best of the best matched up in a series of one-on-one showdowns, leading to a last-four super final. Canadian Sebastian Toutant returned to Beijing to defend his 2010 title. This time he didn't survive past the second round. Instead, it was the Norwegian Ulrik Badertscher who emerged as number one behind an imaginative final maneuver.

Badertscher said, "It's hard to come down...because you are spinning and flipping at the same time."

Air & Style founder Andrew Hourmont said, "It was amazing, come back every year."

The appeal of snowboarding may still be growing, but the entertainment factor is undeniable. The winter sport of the future is happening, right now.

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