Halfpipe dream for White
American wins third career gold medal in event with near-flawless final run Comeback over Blackhawks puts team in elite company
PYEONGCHANG, South Korea — The pressure was real. So were the tears — of joy, relief, redemption.
This is why Shaun White keeps going. This is why the snowboarding superstar keeps coming back to the Olympics, a journey that’s seen him evolve from teenage phenom to global brand to living legend. One with a perpetual target on his back and impossible expectations to meet.
Standing atop the halfpipe on a gray Wednesday morning at slushy Phoenix Snow Park with his hopes for a third gold down to one final shot, White never wavered.
“I honestly knew I had it,” White said. “I knew I had to put it down.”
The stakes left him little choice. Rising star and heir apparent Ayumu Hirano had snatched the lead out
of White’s hand during the men’s halfpipe final, throwing a spectacular epic second run to vault into the lead and put a portion of White’s Olympic legacy at risk.
Not that it mattered.
One deep breath, a half-dozen near flawless tricks — including back-to-back 1440s, a trick he never landed in competition before these finals — and one seemingly interminable wait later, White’s return to the top of his sport was complete.
DREAM
Flip the calendar back to Oct. 24. That’s when the upstart Golden Knights made a statement with a victory at home over one of the early season favorites for the Stanley Cup.
Tuesday’s win over the Blackhawks felt much different.
The Knights retained the top spot in the Western Conference thanks to a four-goal third period and won 5-2 at T-mobile Arena, sending the last-place Chicago Blackhawks to their seventh consecutive loss.
Brad Hunt, Reilly Smith and David Perron scored in the opening 4:54 of the third period for the Knights (37-15-4, 78 points), who improved to 6-9-1 when trailing after two periods, tying New Jersey for the most third-period comeback wins.
“There’s not a lot of panic in this room, that’s for sure,” Smith said. “When we’re down by a goal going in the third period, we know we can battle it out. It’s just one shot to get us back into it, and Huntsy did a great job giving us that.”
Tomas Nosek, who missed the past 12 games with an upper-body injury, added an
KNIGHTS
When his score of 97.75 flashed, more than two points clear of Hirano and almost six clear of Australian bronze medalist Scotty James, it all seemed worth it. The long road back from disappointment in Sochi four years ago. The painful recovery from a crash in New Zealand last fall that required emergency surgery. The notion the man who for so long served as a pioneer had been surpassed by the next generation.
Not quite yet.
“He wears the weight of the country and the world on his shoulders
for this,” said J.J. Thomas, White’s longtime coach. “This is our Super Bowl. But bigger because it’s only once every four years and he stresses out.”
Funny, it didn’t show as he became the first American male to win gold at three separate Winter Olympics. Speedskater Bonnie Blair won gold in the 1988, 1992 and 1994 Games. The gold was also the 100th overall gold for the United States in the Winter Games.
“What can I say? I won the Olympics,” White said. “Three gold medals. I was just hoping they’d give it to me. I was pretty sure I put it down but it took a little while. Just trying not to make eye contact with the
judges.”
James, White and Hirano traded electric runs during qualifying on Tuesday, “sending it” in snowboarding terms and sending a bit of a message in the process. The three have eyed this showdown on the world stage for months and Hirano — who edged James in the X Games last month, an event White opted to skip after locking down a spot on the U.S. Olympic Team — shrugged when asked if he was concerned about the 98.50 White put up on Tuesday to earn the right to go last in the finals.
“I know what he does and he knows what I do,” Ayumu said.
Namely, put on a show.