The red bandana was in place. Face hidden, identity cloaked. But there was no mistaking who was on the hill. And no concern that this bandit would be thieving anything but gold. No, it was clear that Shaun White, in his new Winter X Games VII get-up, would earn his second snowboard gold medal with all the ridiculous guns in his arsenal.
The Flying Tomato whipped out two runs of 95.00 (one in qualifying and one in the final) that no other rider could touch. His run was fast and solid, with trickery that included a frontside 720 stale over the 57-foot channel gap, a perfectly tuned 50-50 to frontside nose-press down the A-frame rail, and a cab 900 stale off the million dollar booter that was as clean as Mickey Mouse's underwear. After taking all the silver in both pipe and slope last year, White, now 16, boosted to the next level in '03 by striking gold in both events, proving he is clearly one of the best Winter X Games freestyle competitors in history.
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| Gold medal winner Shaun White frontside 720s the Craig Kelly channel gap during his winning run. |
"I've always wanted to come to the X Games and do good," said White. "So I guess this is my year … I'm stoked."
The double gold set Shaun next to Olympic gold medalist Ross Powers (two Winter X 24k's in 1998) and made him a shoe-in for "Outstanding Athlete of the Winter X Games." Too bad he can't drive the 2004 Jeep Wrangler Rubicon prize home to Carlsbad, Calif.-he doesn't have his license.
There were, however, other prizes to give out on the slope.
Reigning slopestyle gold medallist Travis Rice laid down a line on his final run that had many thinking it was on for gold. His final run looked like it would challenge White's lead, with stuntary that would curl the mustache of Bert Reynolds in Hooper. He kept his speed over the flats and jibbed where others couldn't. He delivered a line that included a corked backside 540 over the channel gap, a powerful backside 540 rodeo, and a corked cab 900 japan to finish. For some strange reason, the judges gave Rice just 88.67 points. Cheers for Rice turned to boos for the judges when the score was announced.
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| Jimi Tomer rodeo fives on his way to Winter X Games bronze. |
Winter X Games rookie Jimi Tomer, however, got love from the judges. He smoothed the course and nailed a 91.00 in qualifiers to climb into the finals. He was the first rider in the finals to link all the terrain features - technical rail work, rodeo 720, backflip, a slow and steady frontside 180 tail grab over the channel gap, and a solid frontside 900. His score: 86.67, good for the bronze.
Jussi Oksanen improved on the bronze he won in '01 with casual style and trickery. His first run in the finals included three 720s: one frontside, another buttered switch backside, and another that landed near the bottom of the transition on the big money super booter. He scored 93.00, pushing into second place.
"I was so stoked," said Jussi Oksanen on bringing home the silver. "The course was so fun to ride. I tried my best to take the gold on my last run, but it just didn't happen. And Shaun deserves it. He was totally amazing."
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| Jussi's casual style and smooth touchdowns brought home the silver - buttered switch backside 720. |
And totally pirate obsessed, acting up in his freshy supplied "2003 X Games Gold Medalist Shaun White" Volcom T-shirt: "Argggg," Shaun growled into his mom's shoulder as she hugged him crying tears of joy. "Arggg," Shaun wrote onto a poster for a fan. "Arrrggg," he said again, when asked how he made his runs seem so smooth and easy. "I don't know. I'm just having such a good time out here with all my friends."
So Shaun doesn't even know how he does it. But maybe, just maybe, someone else should rock the red bandit get-up next year. Cause it's gonna take more than a smooth run to pirate gold from snowboarding's now boy, Shaun White.
Related Photos:
Snowboard Slopestyle Men's Gallery
