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Jacobellis
https://www.reuters.com/lifestyle/sports/
factbox-olympics-snowboarding-snowboarder-jacobellis-wins-first-us-gold-beijing-2022-02-09
was within metres of winning the event in 2006 - the first time
it was in the Games - when she threw in a showboating trick
trying to grab her board, only to fall and get overtaken at the
line.
She failed to medal again in the next three Olympics despite an
astonishing 10 X-Games and five world individual titles to her
name.
But on Wednesday, Jacobellis displayed a dominant display,
speeding past her competitors in the final in first place, made
all the sweeter as it secured the first U.S. gold of the Games.
Jacobellis said the experience in Turin made her more eager to
continue competing.
"I have definitely put 2006 in the past and have done a lot of
soul-searching to realise that moment doesn't define me as an
athlete and as an individual," she said, adding that she had
spent the past two decades shaping the sport for women.
Speaking to journalists near the finish line, Jacobellis
acknowledge she had been under enormous pressure as a young
athlete and had begun disliking the sport, adding that she may
have quit entirely had she not fumbled the finish in Turin.
"It kept me hungry and kept me fighting for the gold," she said.
The American always looked in command of Wednesday's final but,
as she knows better than anyone, nothing is settled until you
cross the line.
"I wasn't 100% sure but I wasn't seeing anyone in my peripheral
so I was confident when I crossed," she said. "It really seemed
like an unbelievable moment, it didn't seem real at the time.
CAMARADERIE KING
Chloe Trespeuch of France, another veteran at 37, took the
silver and the bronze went to Meryeta O'Dine of Canada and,
typically for the sport where camaraderie is king, they were
both quick to share Jacobellis's joy.
"When she crashed before the line (in 2006) it was really hard
for her," Trespeuch said, adding that the American was an
inspiration for many in the sport.
Wednesday also served as a satisfying return for O'Dine, who
suffered a concussion in a crash during practice and withdrew
from the Pyeongchang Games four years ago, another reason why
she felt able to empathize with Jacobellis.
"That (2006) is a very famous story in snowboard cross and to
see her come home with the gold… it’s honestly really cool to
see," O'Dine said.
Australian Belle Brockoff, who finished fourth in the final,
said she grew up idolising Jacobellis and remembered watching
the moment it fell apart for the American during the 2006 Games.
"For her to keep coming out and not give up is pretty
inspirational," she said.
Charlotte Bankes, the World Cup leader with three wins this
season, had been expected to challenge for Britain's first medal
of the Games but crashed out of contention in the
quarter-finals.
(Reporting by Winni Zhou, Mari Saito and Mitch Phillips; Editing
by Ken Ferris and Ed Osmond)
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