China¡¯s Eileen Gu capped the FIS Freestyle Ski World Cup season with a perfect record in women¡¯s halfpipe after a triumph at Mammoth Mountain in California on Saturday to capture the first crystal globe of her career.
The 18-year-old reigning world champion, who was born in the United States but will represent China at next month¡¯s Beijing Olympics where she is tipped to win gold, delivered a pair of solid runs and finished with a best of 97.50.
Gu¡¯s win saw her become the first skier in freestyle World Cup history to win four consecutive World Cup competitions.
¡°I¡¯m absolutely blown away,¡± Gu said. ¡°97.50 ... that¡¯s the highest score I¡¯ve ever gotten.¡±
¡°I¡¯m so happy to put a run down today, I think that¡¯s probably one of the best runs I¡¯ve ever done in the halfpipe.
¡°And to finish the World Cup season with another win and get my first crystal globe, it¡¯s just incredible.¡±
Former halfpipe world champion Kelly Sildaru (92.50) of Estonia finished second while American Brita Sigourney (87.75) took the bronze medal.
Gu will head to the Feb. 4-20 Beijing Olympics full of confidence as she is a perfect four-for-four in halfpipe World Cup action this season.
In the men¡¯s competition, New Zealand¡¯s Nico Porteous scored 97.00 to beat the American pair of David Wise (95.25) and Aaron Blunck (93.75) to the top spot.
¡°I¡¯ve had a bit of a tough season so far,¡± Porteous said. ¡°I haven¡¯t really been skiing the way I wanted to.
¡°But yeah, to put that run down today is a nice icing on the cake to the World Cup season.¡±
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