COPPER MOUNTAIN -- The first day of finals at the 2024 Toyota U.S. Grand Prix on Friday at Copper Mountain Resort did not disappoint in the slightest.
After athletes were forced to sweat it out in qualifiers on Wednesday, riders could finally take a deep breath and let it fly in the men's and women's snowboard halfpipe finals.
With weekend and holiday crowds beginning to converge at Copper, the bottom of the halfpipe was packed as people looked into the sun and watched the women's snowboard halfpipe final get underway.
After taking first in her heat at qualifiers on Wednesday, two-time Olympic gold medalist Chloe Kim laid down a run littered with style and skill. Kim performed a backside 360, a switch method, a frontside 1080, and a cab 1080. However, as she reached the bottom of the pipe, she slipped out, which the judges were critical of. The run was therefore scored at 33.
Prior to her, fellow Californian Maddie Mastro and Steamboat's Maddy Schaffrick took their first runs.
On her first run, Mastro performed a crippler, a backside 540, a frontside 720, and a big method. The run earned 77. In her second consecutive World Cup final after nearly a decade away from competition, Schaffrick landed a backside 540 and crippler with a nose grab before falling near the middle of the pipe.
Following the first round of runs, Japan's Sara Shimizu -- only 15 years old -- led the field with a score of 90.50, Mitsuki Ono of Japan sat in second (88), and China's Xuetong Cai maintained third (85.50).
With the trio of Americans all out of a podium spot, the athletes tried to put together better executed runs on their second trips down the pipe. After falling on her first run, Schaffrick strung together a clean run from top to bottom. Highlighted by a stale fish, a crippler with a nose grab, and a switch backside 540, Schaffrick boosted her score to 82.75.
Kim also managed to drastically improve her score. Leaving no doubt this time, she once again linked a backside 360, a switch method, and back-to-back 1080s. The clean run was scored at a 86.75, moving her into fourth to begin the final round of runs.
Taking a hard slam in qualifiers on Wednesday, Mastro chose to not take her second or third run.
Wanting to finish atop the podium, Kim went for it on her final run. With nothing to lose, Kim confidently stomped her third attempt. The run, although impressive, did not garner a better score than her second run, resulting in a fourth-place finish (86.75).
Shimizu was crowned the Grand Prix champion with a score of 90.50, Cai moved up to second (88.50), and Ono finished in third (88). Schaffrick finished a spot behind Kim in fifth with a top run score of 84.50 and Mastro took sixth (77).
Like in qualifiers, the men's snowboard halfpipe final took place simultaneously alongside the women's.
Making up the 10-man final were three Americans in Idaho's Chase Josey, Connecticut's Joey Okesson, and Leadville's Jason Wolle.
After taking eighth at last year's U.S. Grand Prix at Copper, Wolle, 25, soared into the halfpipe and performed a frontside 720, a frontside 900, and a backside double Michalchuk. The run earned the Winter Park native a score of 58.75.
Okesson quickly followed Wolle down the pipe, putting down a frontside 900 with a melon grab, and a frontside double 1260. The run was scored at 47.50. On Josey's first run, the two-time Olympian landed a switch backside 900 and a frontside double 1260 to earn a score of 67.
The fury of Americans were followed by some of the most decorated and talented riders in the world, including 2022 Olympic silver medalist Scotty James and reigning Olympic champion Ayumu Hirano.
On James' first run, the Australian flew high out of the pipe with a switch McTwist before landing a switch double McTwist on his final hit of the pipe. Earning a score of 87.75, the impressive run shot James to the top of the rankings.
Japan's Hirano attempted to threaten James at the top of the results but fell midway through his first run.
With none of the Americans on the podium after the first round, Wolle tried to change that. As the crowd spurred him on, he performed a double cork 1080, a frontside 900, and a double Michalchuk. The run bumped his score to a 70.75 to put himself on the podium for the time being.
He remained on the podium until Japan's Yuto Totsuka put down a massive run that was scored at a 92. Moments later, Korea's Chaeun Lee pushed Wolle further down in the rankings by landing back-to-back 1440s that wowed the crowd and the judges.
Earning an 86.50, Lee bumped into the third as the competition entered its final round.
Needing to improve upon his second run, Wolle cleaned up his run, landing similar tricks to his first two attempts. Despite his best efforts, he did not improve upon his second run score of 70.75, finishing as the top American in seventh place.
"It was really just an all around amazing day," he said. "Practice went really smooth, and I landed all of my competition runs to a strategy we had already performed. I had a great time, landed all the runs. Getting a top eight is really huge because I need two of them to make the U.S. team. I am halfway there, I have to do it at one more. I have a couple more contests where I am going to do my best to get into the top eight."
Trying to pop over Totsuka, James put it all on the line on his final run. The run, which featured a technical switch backside double cork, was an improvement from his first run, but it was not enough to shoot over Totsuka's third-run score of 94.75.
As the final three competitors took to the pipe, the competition ramped up to another level. After falling on his first two attempts, Japan's Ruka Hirano landed a clean run to move into second with a score of 92.75.
With his back against the wall after two falls, Ayumu Hirano landed a clean run of his own. Not shaken by the moment in the slightest, Hirano made a triple cork and a 1440 look effortless. The stoic performance was enough for the 26-year-old rider to shoot from ninth to first with a score of 97.
With Lee falling on his final run, the Japanese sweep of the podium was complete. Hirano won the competition thanks to his last run (97), Totsuka finished in second (94.75), and Ruka Hirano took third (92.75).
The final day of the U.S. Grand Prix on Saturday will feature the finals in men's and women's halfpipe skiing. Additionally, X Games will hosts the finals of its Street Style Pro event in the early evening hours.