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SNOWBOARDINGOnboard Entertainment - washingtonpost.com graphic
An
American sweep began things as Ross Powers, Danny Kass and J.J. Thomas
went gold-silver-bronze in the halfpipe — the first of five medals for
the American team. Chris Klug of the United States, who 20 months
earlier had received a liver transplant, took the bronze medal in
men’s parallel giant slalom. And Kelly Clark won gold in women’s
halfpipe. France’s Isabelle Blanc and Karine Ruby went 1-2 in women’s
parallel giant slalom.
MEN
PARALLEL |
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Philipp Schoch (SUI) |
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Richard Richardsson (SWE) |
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Chris Klug (USA) |
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HALFPIPE |
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Ross Powers (USA) |
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Danny Kass (USA) |
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Jarret Thomas (USA) |
WOMEN
PARALLEL |
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Isabelle Blanc (FRA) |
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Karine Ruby (FRA) |
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Lidia Trettel (ITA) |
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HALFPIPE |
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Kelly Clark (USA) |
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Doriane Vidal (FRA) |
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Fabienne Reuteler (SUI) |
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MEDAL TALLY |
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Total |
United States |
2 |
1 |
2 |
5 |
France |
1 |
2 |
0 |
3 |
Switzerland |
1 |
0 |
1 |
2 |
Sweden |
0 |
1 |
0 |
1 |
Italy |
0 |
0 |
1 |
1 |
Total |
4 |
4 |
4 |
12 |
VENUE & EVENTS
Park City Mountain Resort
1310 Lowell Ave., Park City, Utah
45 km/28miles from the Olympic Village
With its diverse mix of halfpipe tricks and elegant turns, snowboarding resembles skiing but looks more like surfing or skateboarding and is the world's fastest growing winter sport. Snowboarding debuted at Nagano in 1998, and Park City Mountain Resort's Eagle Race Arena will showcase the 2002 generation of the sport's finest athletes, in halfpipe and parallel giant slalom competitions. Snowboarding has quickly become a fan favorite. It features aerial acrobatics, dynamic personalities and a unique lingo as colorful as the boards themselves.
The competition is broken into two disciplines - one emphasizing speed and the other style. There are four snowboard events: men's halfpipe, women's halfpipe, men's parallel giant slalom and women's parallel giant slalom. Both halfpipe events were contested at the 1998 Olympic Winter Games, where the sport of snowboarding debuted. The parallel giant slalom events appear on the Olympic program for the first time, replacing the two giant slalom events that were contested in Nagano. Competitors ride with both feet on a single wide board that is specialized for each event. Snowboards used in giant slalom are longer, narrower and stiffer for speed and sharp turns. Halfpipe boards are wider and more flexible, providing better balance and maneuverability. Shovels at both ends allow the rider to go in either direction.
The halfpipe competition takes place in a U-shaped, half-cylinder-shaped course dug deep into the hill. The pipe is generally 3 to 4 meters deep and 110 meters long with an 85-degree pitch and high vertical walls on each side. It is 49 feet wide and 11.5 feet high. Athletes board down a straight, banked course and using speed gained on the slope, snowboarders ride back and forth up to the edge of the pipe and over the rim while performing acrobatic aerial tricks. The object of the halfpipe is to perform difficult tricks with perfect form. Participants use the more flexible freestyle board, and are judged on standard maneuvers, rotational maneuvers, amplitude, landings and overall/technical merit. Competitors are rated by a panel of five judges. Each judge focuses on a specific aspect of the run - one on standard moves, one on rotations, one on amplitude and two on overall impression.
An exciting version of alpine snowboarding, parallel giant slalom features head-to-head matchups on the mountain. After the qualification round, a 16-person tournament is established and competitors battle it out on two side-by-side 1800-ft courses - alternating courses in each race - until there is a winner. To advance, an athlete must win both races or, in the case of a split, have a better total time than his or her opponent. In the giant slalom, competitors use the hard alpine boards as they descend a downhill course while traveling between gates. Boarders are judged on speed and technique.
