Iouri Podladtchikov of Switzerland won the men's snowboarding halfpipe gold medal on Tuesday night in Sochi, beating out Shaun White and 10 other finalists on the Winter Olympics' much-criticized course.
Podladtchikov registered a high score of 94.75 on his second run. Japan's 15-year-old sensation Ayumu Hirano came in second, while Taku Hiraoka, also of Japan, took the bronze medal. White came in fourth place. Podladtchikov was born in Russia before emigrating from the country with his parents at four years old, according to NBC's livestream broadcasters.
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White, the prohibitive favorite in the event, would have taken home his third consecutive Olympic gold medal in the halfpipe. Instead, that bid was denied. He pulled out of snowboarding's slopestyle event last week to focus on the halfpipe amid safety concerns about Sochi's slopestyle course. That move drew criticism from other riders as selfish and inconsiderate of younger, hungrier snowboarders.
Podladtchikov's winning performance came after a controversial few days for Sochi's halfpipe course. Snowboarders criticized its design as dangerous and "crappy" and 34 rider falls were reported during Tuesday's qualifying rounds. Multiple riders took spills in the finals as well. Here's a first-run fall from Team USA's Danny Davis, who was among the Sochi halfpipe's harshest critics this week:
Image: NBC
And here's a first-run spill from White:
From Switzerland's newly-minted gold medalist Podladtchikov, however, you'll likely hear few complaints.
And Now For Some Photos: