After two second places in 2014 and 2018, the Japanese Ayumu Hirano has secured his first Olympic victory in the snowboard halfpipe. The 23-year-old triumphed on Friday in Beijing after a spectacular performance with 96 points ahead of three-time world champion Scott James from Australia (92.50). Jan Scherrer from Switzerland took bronze (87.25). US superstar Shaun White (85) came fourth in his farewell performance, as in 2014.
White won gold in the halfpipe in 2006, 2010 and 2018. This time, as in Sochi, the 35-year-old finished fourth and remained without further precious metal. White fell in the third and final heat, 2.25 points behind Scherrer in bronze. “It was super emotional,” White said. “I’m not sad about the result either. That’s snowboarding, it can happen.”
Hirano followed White as Olympic champion thanks to an outstanding performance of highest difficulty in the last heat. White announced in Beijing last week that he wanted to end his successful career after these games. The snowboard legend shaped this sport like no other.
So it was no wonder that White soon cried uncontrollably after the finale. “Thank you snowboarding. You were the love of my life,” the superstar said through tears. After the botched last run of his career, the 35-year-old still had his emotions under control, but a few minutes later the three-time Olympic champion could no longer hold back in front of the camera of the US television network NBC. “I didn’t want to cry,” White sobbed, “but everything here is just super emotional for me.”
After the competition, his competitors came to pat him on the back or give him a hug. “Everyone else told me that the sport and the tricks would not be as good as they are without me. That makes me really happy,” said the San Diego-born exceptional talent. “I would have liked to have been on the podium again here, but you just can’t always have everything,” said the Californian.
Source: Nachrichten
