Rochon comes up just short in final
Native of Gatineau, Que., attempts ambitious trick but misses his landing
PYEONGCHANG, SOUTH KOREA — Olivier Rochon tried to imitate fellow Canadian Warren Shouldice with his tricks in the men’s aerials final Sunday at the Winter Olympics, but came up just short.
Rochon attempted the challenging back lay-triple full-full but missed his landing. He was the only one to complete it in the semifinal.
“It’s been four years that I’ve practised it on water because it’s a really difficult jump,” Rochon said. “And like we were able to see, it doesn’t work all the time, even if it’s exactly what you wanted to do.”
The Gatineau, Que., native finished fifth with a score of 98.11. He was far from disappointed in the mixed zone afterwards.
“It was special,” Rochon said. “All the work that I’ve accomplished in four years, it was to get me to this moment. I did the jump that I wanted to do.
“My speed was good, but I had a bit too much rotation. You know, in the triple full, we don’t see a lot. I had a decision to make: stay in my full or open my arms. But it was a fraction of a second and unfortunately it was too late. If I had of succeeded (the jump), it was a for sure podium.”
Shouldice, from Calgary, was the last aerialist to complete that jump in competition which won him gold at the 2011 world championships in Deer Valley. Oleksandr Abramenko gave Ukraine its third-ever gold medal at the Winter Olympics, edging China’s Jia Zongyang.
Abramenko posted a score of 128.51 in his last jump to give his country its first medal in Pyeongchang. He also became the first Ukrainian man to win a medal of any variety in the Winter Games.
Ilia Burov, an Olympic athlete from Russia, earned bronze.
Quebec City’s Lewis Irving was eliminated in the qualification round.
After missing out on being selected for Vancouver in 2010 and Sochi in 2014, Rochon is hoping to attempt one more Olympic cycle that would end at the 2022 Beijing Games.