Shaun White is golden again.
Four years after finishing one spot off the podium, the iconic American snowboarder won the Olympic halfpipe final at Phoenix Park on Wednesday. Japan's Ayumu Hirano won silver and Scotty James of Australia took bronze.
On his final run, White threw down back-to-back double cork 1440s showing off his signature amplitude to score a 97.75 to beat Hirano's best run of 95.25.
James had his best score in the first run, scoring a 92.00.
After winning Olympic gold in Torino and Vancouver, White finished a disappointing fourth in Sochi.
Since then, he’s changed his team and his outlook. Despite a horrific crash in training for these Games, he came into Pyeongchang with a more balanced approach to his riding.
It has paid off in his progression. White, 31, has gotten comfortable landing variations of a double cork 1440, which is two off-axis flips and four rotations.
It was the 100th gold medal for Team USA in Winter Games history and the fourth for snowboarders at these Games, following wins by Chloe Kim, Red Gerard and Jamie Anderson.
On Wednesday, he joined Hirano as the only riders to land them back-to-back.
