Reno’s Wise delivers corker of a finish
Four double spins on final run notches gold for Nevadan
BONGPYEONG, South Korea — Freestyle skier David Wise, Reno born and bred, defended his gold medal Thursday, breaking through on his final run to give the United States its third halfpipe gold at the Pyeongchang Olympics.
Wise wiped out on his first two runs before sneaking past countryman Alex Ferreira on his third with a score of 97.20. Wise, 27, landed double corks in all four directions — front left, front right, switch (backward) left and switch right — a goal he set for himself entering these Olympics.
“Putting all four of them into a run is certainly the most challenging thing I’ve ever done,” Wise said.
It’s the seventh gold for the U.S. in Pyeongchang, five of which have come at Phoenix Snow Park. Chloe Kim and Shaun White won snowboard halfpipe gold last week, and Red Gerard and Jamie Anderson won at snowboard slopestyle.
The snowboard and freestyle skiing crews have picked up the slack for the United States, accounting for 10 of the country’s 19 medals.
Ferreira won silver, and Nico Porteous, 16, of New Zealand took bronze.
Ferreira, 23, stormed past Porteous on his second run. The American spun his right ski pole over his head at the bottom of the halfpipe, then threw up his hands when the judges gave him a 96.00.
Wise put down his double-cork dream run a few minutes later, and Ferreira could only counter with a 96.40.
It was a clutch show for Wise, who was on track to knock out all four double corks in each of his first two runs before binding issues left him sprawled in the snow.
“For run 3, we cranked my bindings up as high as they go,” he said. “We’re like, ‘You know what, my
leg’s coming off before the ski does.’”
Wise had a large cheering section of family and friends at the bottom of the halfpipe, and most of them had “David Wise” drawn on their faces. Wise’s sister, Christy, is an Air Force rescue pilot who lost a leg in a paddleboarding accident in 2015, and Wise is giving 10 percent of all his earnings this season to a foundation he and his sisters created: One Leg Up On Life.