Zoi Sadowski Synnott poised to create history after topping the snowboard slopestyle qualification
Japan's Murase Kokomo keeps close to the top as cold weather impacts reigning champion Jamie Anderson
Snowboard
Zoi Sadowski Synnott received a nice confidence boost to becoming the first gold medal winner in any sport for New Zealand at the Olympic Winter Games when she topped the snowboard slopestyle qualification event at the Genting Snow Park in Zhangjiakou on Saturday (5 February),
The reigning slopestyle world champion was third after her opening run, but she put down an impressive second run to pick of a score of 86.75 points which was enough to take her to the top of the scoresheet.
"I was pretty stoked on that one to put it down and link all the tricks together. It feels good coming in tomorrow after putting that one down." - Zoi Sadowski Synnott
Teenager Murase Kokomo from Japan was the only other athlete to break the 80-points barrier, the 17-year-old finished second with a score of 81.45 points.
Finland's Enni Rukajarvi completed the top three a score of with 78.83 points while PyeongChang 2018 big air gold medallist Anna Gasser was fourth with 75.00 points.
Reigning two-time Olympic snowboard slopestyle champion Jamie Anderson was unable to better her opening run of 74.35 points, but that was enough to see her finish fifth overall.
It was the best possible start for Synnott but the 20-year-old was quick to point out that there was still more to come from her, "I guess for qualifications you kind of have to balance with going for hard tracks and then getting through to finals. I've got a bit more in the tank for tomorrow, but I'm just taking it step by step and hope for the best performance for tomorrow."
MORE: Olympic snowboard at Beijing 2022: Top five things to know
Weather woes for reigning champ Jamie Anderson
Anderson arrived at Beijing 2022 in search of a third consecutive gold medal in this event, having clinched back-to-back victories at PyeongChang 2018 and Sochi 2014.
The American was second after a strong opening but was unable to string together a clean second run which saw her tumble down the order. Anderson still comfortably qualified for tomorrow's final.
With temperatures of around minus 23 degrees Celsius, the 31-year-old shared just how challenging the condition were, "It's cold, it's hard to keep your core temperature warm, and then doing tricks feels a little bit more intimidating. You're just like a little bit stiff. But we can do it.
"The wind is kind of an issue, but thankfully it's been kind of a crosswind so it's not really blowing you down. It just scares you." - Jamie Anderson
Who has qualified for the Women's Snowboard Slopestyle final at Beijing 2022?
The top 12 athletes from today's qualification runs have earned their place in the final which will take place on Sunday (6 February) starting from 9:30 am local time (China Standard Time).
Here are the list of finalists:
- Zoi SADOWSKI SYNNOTT (NZL)
- MURASE Kokomo (JPN)
- Enni RUKAJARVI (FIN)
- Anna GASSER (AUT)
- Jamie ANDERSON (USA)
- Julia MARINO (USA)
- Laurie BLOUIN (CAN)
- Tess COADY (AUS)
- Hailey LANGLAND (USA)
- Annika MORGAN (GER)
- IWABUCHI Reira (JPN)
- Ariane BURRI (SUI)
Be sure to follow all the action from Beijing 2022 in our non-stop live blog which will keep you up-to-date right 24/7 until the Closing Ceremony on 20 February.