A teenage snowboarder from Japan made Olympic history Wednesday, claiming the women’s slopestyle championship at the Winter Games in Livigno, Italy.
Mari Fukada, just 19 years old, secured her first-ever Olympic medal by earning a score of 87.83 on her third and final run down the course. The victory marked Japan’s dominance in the event, with teammate Kokomo Murase capturing the bronze medal.
New Zealand’s Zoi Sadowski Synnott, who defended her 2022 Olympic title, claimed silver with a dramatic final performance. The 24-year-old veteran found herself in fourth position before taking her last trip down the mountain as the competition’s final competitor. Her clutch performance earned her 87.48 points and extended her Olympic medal collection to five total.
Murase had initially led the competition following the opening round of runs. The Japanese athlete, who already earned gold in big air competition on February 9, was eventually surpassed by her countryman Fukada during the second round.
The slopestyle discipline challenges athletes to navigate various rails and obstacles while executing aerial maneuvers that judges evaluate based on technical difficulty and creativity. Competitors receive three opportunities to post their best score.
Australia’s Ally Hickman, competing at age 16, experienced a frightening crash during her second attempt when she missed a landing and tumbled forward onto the frozen course. The young athlete remained on the ground for several minutes before getting up and leaving the competition area under her own power. She returned for another run but fell again during a jump sequence.
The women’s competition took place on the same day that China’s Su Yiming celebrated his birthday by winning men’s slopestyle gold.
Competition officials had pushed back the slopestyle finals by 24 hours due to severe winter weather conditions in the Alpine region.
