Watch: Ayumu Hirano Overcomes Controversial Judges' Score, Wins Gold With Epic Run

Share

Japanese snowboarder Ayumu Hirano thought he had vaulted himself to the top of the leaderboard with his second run in the men’s halfpipe competition, but when the judges left him in second place with a controversial score, he took matters into his own hands in the third and final time down the hill.

Hirano, who captured silver medals in the last two Olympics, went last in the third and final set of runs, and he put forth arguably the most dominant performance of his career as he captured the gold medal in style:

Hirano’s final run netted him a 96.00, besting the 92.50 that James had put up in his second run.

In his second run, he landed a triple cork, only the second time in history that the trick has been landed in the Olympics, but judges only gave him a 91.75, leaving him in second place.

He was able to recover beautifully from the setback, capturing the top prize in the 23-year-old’s third Olympics.

The victory gives Hirano his third Olympic medal, and is a redemption of sorts for him after he won silver medals in Sochi in 2014 and PyeongChang in 2018.

Jan Scerrer won the bronze medal in the event, while Shaun White finished fourth in his final Olympic competition.

Exit mobile version