Teen snowboarder wins halfpipe World Cup title in China

Teen snowboarder Choi Gaon captured her first World Cup title of the season in the women's halfpipe in China on Friday, after staging a massive comeback in her second of two attempts. Choi finished first with 92.75 points at the International Ski Federation (FIS) Snowboard World Cup in Zhangjiakou, China, 2.50 points ahead of Rise Kudo of Japan. Cai Xuetong of China finished third with 80.50 points. This was Choi's first World Cup victory since December 2023 and bodes well for Choi's medal prospects at the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics in February. Choi, 17, topped the qualification stage with 93.00 points earlier in the week, but she only earned 23.75 points in the first run of the final. By the time Choi was ready for her second run, she was in last place — with three boarders below her after the first run having all posted higher scores than Choi's initial score in their second runs. Choi went out and posted the best score by anyone in the final to snatch the comeback win. The next World Cup stop will be in Copper Mountain, Colorado, next week.Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Korea Times Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Korea Times