Kingsbury storms to men’s moguls crown
Hara grabs historic bronze
PYEONGCHANG, South Korea, Feb 12, (AP): Mikael Kingsbury kept trying to convince himself the Olympics were just another event. That his legacy as one of the greatest moguls skiers ever didn’t necessarily rely on his performance in Pyeongchang.
Then the 25-year-old Canadian woke up Monday morning with jitters in his stomach. The kind that don’t go away. Not even for a six-time world champion.
“I’ve never been nervous like that in my life,” Kingsbury said, adding he put so much pressure on himself “it was crazy.”
He found sanity and peace in a familiar spot: atop his skis atop a mountain looking down at a course he knew he could dominate like he has so many others during his long run atop his sport. One that doesn’t appear ready to end anytime soon. Not with gold around Kingsbury’s Canada’s Mikael Kingsbury competes to win the men’s moguls final during the Pyeongchang 2018 Winter Olympic Games at the Phoenix Park in
Pyeongchang on Feb 12. (AFP)
0 before doing it all over again. No racer seems as firmly under control as Kingsbury. “He’s hands-down one of, if not the, greatest person to grace the sport,” said American Casey Andringa, who reached the finals before finishing fifth. “For him not to win a gold medal tonight, I would’ve been sad.” No chance. Matt Graham of Australia took silver and Daichi Hara of Japan earned bronze, each picking up the first medal of the games for their countries. Hara’s bronze was the first medal by an Asian athlete in moguls, which became a permanent Olympic event in 1992.
Kingsbury cruised through the opening round of qualifying on Friday and spent the weekend trying to keep everything as normal as possible. Still, he knew it wasn’t.
The long wait for Monday evening seemed endless. Only when Kingsbury clipped in on the biggest night of his professional life did he exhale.
He started slowly, playing it safe during the opening rounds of finals. He was fourth in the first round and second to Hara in the second.