Belarus soars to second straight gold-medal victory

Hanna Huskova survived unpredictable and windy Phoenix Snow Park to give Belarus its second straight gold medal in women’s aerials, edging Zhang Xin of China in an event that turned into a battle of survival after four of the six skiers in the final qualifying round either sat down on their landings or wiped out completely. Belarus has long been a force in the men’s aerials, winning at least one medal in each of the last five Winter Games — and with Anton Kushnir in the mix to defend the gold he won in Sochi when the men’s competition starts on Saturday. The women’s program is gaining ground on the guys behind the 25-year-old Huskova and the seemingly ageless Alla Tsuper, who came in fourth in her sixth trip to the Olympics. Favourite Xu Mengtao of China washed out in the second round and failed to advance to the final. Winds swirled throughout the competition, starting off from left to right before moving directly into the face of the skiers as they went down the hill at speeds upward of 30 m.p.h.