ZHANGJIAKOU, China (Reuters) -Lindsey Jacobellis won the first gold medal for the United States at the Beijing Olympics in women’s snowboard cross on Wednesday and finally found redemption after her career-defining fail at the Turin Games 16 years ago.
Chloe Trespeuch of France took the silver and the bronze went to Meryeta O’Dine of Canada.
Jacobellis was within metres of winning the event in 2006 when she threw in a showboating trick, only to fall and get overtaken at the line.
She has won multiple Crystal Globe and X Games titles but continued to miss out in the Olympics, until finally getting it right on Wednesday.
Sochi bronze medallist Trespeuch’s performance was not a surprise as the 37-year-old has secured four podium spots this season.
O’Dine also returned to the Olympic cross course after she suffered a concussion in a crash during practice and withdrew from the Pyeongchang Games four years ago.
Snowboard cross is measured based on athletes’ times finishing the course, with a distance of 1,310 metres and is filled with various elements, including turns, drops, jumps and berms.
(Reporting by Winni Zhou and Mari Saito; Editing by Ken Ferris and Ed Osmond)
