Finland's Martti Kuoppa saved his best for last, recording a smooth, clean and focused run featuring masterful foot control with kickflips for a 95.00 and his third straight gold in the X Games Bike Stunt Flatland competition this afternoon at the First Union Complex.

Germany's Michael Steingraeber captured the silver with a 93.40. England's Phil Dolan finished third with a 93.00. "After my first run was bad, I knew I had to come up huge in my last run," the 23-year-old said. "But I had lost some faith in myself. All I could do was try the best I could to win and I did." Steingraeber, who earned silver for the second time in the last three years, could not capture the same magic from Saturday's preliminary round when he put together a rolling backwheel combo into a spinning combo link that wowed fans, earned him a 94.40 and top billing for the finals. "After I saw Marrti's second run," said the 31-year-old who has medalled in all of his 2002 flatland competitions, "I knew I had do something really special to stay on top. Obviously, I wouldn't have minded gold, but silver is cool too. I'm just happy to keep my (medal) streak alive." With his trademark fast, fluid links, Dolan rolled the course frontward and backwards, one-footed, frontwheel and backwheel, including a backwards pedaling Death Truck.

With his third place finish, Dolan has alternated second and third place finishes at the last four X Games. "This is so good, so hot. I had a blast," he said. "I feel like I hit every run and every trick. After Marrti's second run, I knew I had to be on. But, hey, Marrti's the man today." The X Games showcases 300 of the world's best action sports athletes competing in a variety of sports events for medals and more than $1 million in total prize money. In its first year as X Games host, Philadelphia drew 235,000 spectators during X Games VII, August 17-22, 2001. ESPN, ESPN2 and ABC Sports will combine to televise more than 20 original hours of X Games VIII coverage August 17 - 22, while ESPN International will distribute the Games worldwide. In addition, EXPN.com, the year-round home for action sports and culture, will offer extensive event coverage, including streaming video from the X Games.