PYEONGCHANG, South Korea (AP) Shaun White has become the first American male to win gold at three Winter Olympics.
White put together an epic final run to capture the halfpipe with a score of 97.75. The 31-year-old White trailed Japan’s Ayumu Hirano going into the last of the three runs in the 12-man final. The Flying Tomato closed with a daring set that included consecutive 1440-degree spins.
It was the 100th Winter Olympic gold medal for the U.S.
Hirano finished second, followed by Scotty James.
Shaun White has dismissed sexual misconduct allegations made against him in a 2016 lawsuit as “gossip.”
White was criticized on social media and questioned in a press conference about allegations made in a lawsuit by a former drummer in White’s rock band.
The woman says White sexually harassed and refused to pay her. The lawsuit was settled last May.
White was asked in a media conference if the lawsuit might tarnish his reputation.
He said, “I’m here to talk about the Olympics, not gossip and stuff.” He added, “I don’t think so.”
Reporters attempted to follow up about the lawsuit, but the conference moderator shut them down. White rushed off stage as reporters questioned him about the allegations following the conference.
Also at Pyeongchang:
Defending champion Eric Frenzel of Germany has won the gold medal in the Nordic combined normal hill. Frenzel erased a 36-second deficit after the ski jumping stage and surged ahead of Akito Watabe on the last uphill of the 10-kilometer cross-country race to finish 4.8 seconds ahead of his Japanese rival. Austria’s Lukas Klapfer took the bronze.
American Mikaela Shiffrin’s debut in the Pyeongchang Olympics has been put on hold once again because of high winds. The women’s slalom was postponed to Friday following a one-hour delay at the start. Shiffrin is the defending Olympic champion. She already had her giant slalom race postponed to Thursday, when winds are expected to ease.
The Chinese figure pair of Sui Wenjing and Han Cong lead Russian skaters Evgenia Tarasova and Vladimir Morozov by less than a point after the short program. Meagan Duhamel and Eric Radford of Canada are third with 76.82 points.
USA Medals Count: 3 gold, 1 silver, 2 bronze
