For the second straight season, Bend’s Ben Watts was named to U.S. Snowboarding’s halfpipe rookie team.

At 17 years old, Watts is the second-youngest snowboarder on the nine-rider rookie team.

Highlighting the 17 riders named to the pro and rookie-team rosters are five Olympians, including two-time Olympic medalist Kelly Clark (Mount Snow, Vt.), Olympic silver medalist Gretchen Bleiler (Aspen, Colo.) and two-time Grand Prix champion Louie Vito (Sandy, Utah).

The teams will compete in many events, including the U.S. Snowboarding Grand Prix, which features halfpipe stops in Copper Mountain, Colo. (Dec. 10), and Mammoth Mountain, Calif.

Other major events on the schedule include the Dew Tour, X Games and U.S. Open. The rookie team will also compete in some World Cup and Revolution Tour stops.