Sadowski Synnott gets New Zealand’s 1st Winter Olympic gold

By: Eddie Pells, The Associated Press Posted: 9:52 PM CST Saturday, Feb. 5, 2022 Last Modified: 9:52 PM CST Saturday, Feb. 5, 2022

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ZHANGJIAKOU, China (AP) — Zoi Sadowski Synnott captured New Zealand’s first gold medal in Winter Olympic history, stomping down a pressure-packed run on her last trip down the mountain Sunday to win the title in women’s slopestyle.

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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 05/02/2022 (1335 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The 20-year-old was one of the very few to put down a clean run on a supersized course, where hardpacked snow and bone-cold wind chills made things difficult on all 12 finalists, including two-time defending champion Jamie Anderson, who finished ninth.

Sadowski Synnott went into her last of three runs trailing American Julia Marino but came up big.

New Zealand's Zoi Sadowski Synnott competes during the women's slopestyle finals at the 2022 Winter Olympics, Sunday, Feb. 6, 2022, in Zhangjiakou, China. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

She landed a double-cork 1080 on the second jump, and while not repeating that jump the way she did when she won the Winter X Games last month, her backside 1080 off the final kicker was more than enough.

She raised her hands in the air after landing, knowing what she’d done. Marino and third-place finisher Tess Coady of Australia knew it, too. They tackled her at the finish line to celebrate.

A few minutes later, the scoreboard confirmed it, and New Zealand had its first Winter Games victory — brought home by an Australian-born shredder whose family moved to her father’s homeland when she was six.