Lindsey Jacobellis completed a rousing late comeback to claim her second gold of the Beijing Games and ensure the United States were crowned as the first-ever Olympic champions in the mixed snowboard cross.
The 36-year-old, who infamously fell styling out a jump in the 2006 Turin Games and lost a huge lead, won the women’s event earlier in the week and slipped past Michela Moioli, of Italy, in the final section of the course to double up.
“We came in hot today, we’re really excited about it,” Jacobellis said after Saturday’s race.
Jacobellis was partnered by Nick Baumgartner, who put aside a disappointing 10th-placed finish in the individual event to ride a strong leg before letting his emotions out.
“These tears are so much better than the ones from the other day,” he said, adding that riding with Jacobellis took the pressure of him. “I knew if I messed up she could cover for me, but I wanted to prove to everyone what I wanted to prove two days ago. And I did that today.”
The format, featuring one man and one woman per team per race, made its Olympic debut amid heavy snow and poor visibility. Italy’s Omar Visintin, who took the first leg for his pairing, said watching the closing stages play out was tough.
“It was a good race, so much fun riding today because it was way less tense than two days ago [when he won individual bronze], but being down in the bottom, watching Michela fighting with Lindsey, I was so scared and it was so emotional.”
Eliot Grondin and Meryeta Odine of Canada took bronze, with Lorenzo Sommariva and Caterina Carpano of Italy just missing the podium. Odine collided with Carpano but regained her feet to claim her second bronze of the Games.
Gold medals
A sensational final leg from Veronika Stepanova led athletes representing the Russian Olympic Committee to gold in the women’s 4×5 kilometer relay. Germany led for a large chunk of the race, only for Stepanova to storm past late on.
Despite that, the silver medal will still be considered a success by the German team, who last won a cross country Olympic medal since a bronze back in Sochi 2014. Sweden picked up the bronze this time around.
Questions remain over Valieva
The delay in Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva, 15, receiving her positive drug test result, which allowed her to compete and win a gold medal at the Beijing Games, continues to be a live issue at the Olympics, with anti-doping officials looking to reinstate her ban.
More than six weeks went by between Valieva’s sample being taken on December 25 and February 8, when she was notified by a lab in Stockholm, Sweden that she had tested positive for the banned heart medication trimetazidine. Valieva and her Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) team had won a gold medal a day earlier.
The Stockholm lab is accredited by the World Anti-Doping Association (WADA). The ROC and the Russian Anti-Doping Association have questioned the timeline.
On Saturday, the International Olympic Committee said the delay was a question for WADA.
Valieva’s suspension, imposed by the ROC, was lifted on appeal. She is due to compete again on Tuesday.
Edited by: Martin Kuebler
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