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Ice skating’s judging controversy has bled into snowboarding.
While less viral than Team USA’s Evan Bates and Madison Chock controversial second-place finish Wednesday, Chloe Kim’s silver medal in the women’s halfpipe is now being called into question.
After her first run, the reigning two-time Olympic gold medalist tallied an 88.0, which gave her the lead until 17-year-old Choi Ga-on notched a 90.25 on her third and final run.
Only the best of a snowboarder’s three runs counts toward the standings and Kim only had one run remaining after Ga-on’s leading mark.
However, her three-peat dream was dashed after Kim wiped out on both her final runs.
Still, some felt the 25-year-old was robbed of the top podium spot as Kim landed the hardest trick in the sport — a double-cork 1080 — while Ga-on did not.
The NBC commentators seemed surprised at Kim’s score. Did the judges give her a light score after the first run thinking that she would land something bigger later on?
NBC commentator Todd Richards shared some of his own thoughts on Instagram after the event.
“The fact that you are flipping twice upside down while spinning a 1080, the consequences of getting that wrong are a lot higher than doing a switch-backside 900,” Richards said.
“So, Chloe’s 88, in my personal opinion, if she had dropped that on her second or third go, she would’ve been in the lead.”
Kim previously won gold in the women’s halfpipe at 17 years old in PyeongChang in 2018 and later for back-to-back titles in Beijing in 2022.
“I love Ga-on so much. I’ve known her since she was a very small child,” Kim told reporters after the event. “Seeing her at this big stage is such a full-circle moment. I definitely feel old, but it’s really cool to see how much she’s progressed. I met her when she literally started halfpipe snowboarding. Sometimes it feels like I’m seeing a mirror reflection of myself and my family.”
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Shaun White, who won three Olympic golds in halfpipe, was at the event to potentially watch Kim make history.
Kim’s boyfriend and NFL star Myles Garrett was also in attendance to celebrate Kim after she nearly had to sit out of the Games due to a shoulder injury.
She was later medically cleared and put down the top qualifier score of 90.25 among 24 competitors Wednesday.
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