Davis Takes Gold in First X Games Final

ASPEN, CO (Jan. 26) – U.S. Olympic team member Danny Davis (Truckee, CA) earned a gold medal in his first-ever halfpipe snowboarding final at X Games Aspen Sunday, just two weeks before the 2014 Olympic Winter Games in Sochi, Russia. Davis led a U.S. sweep with Louie Vito (Sandy, UT) taking silver and fellow Olympic team member Greg Bretz (Mammoth Lakes, CA) bronze. The strong American showing came without defending Olympic gold medalist Shaun White (Carlsbad, CA), who took a break from X Games to focus on Sochi. Olympic halfpipe snowboarding is scheduled for Feb. 11 for the men and Feb. 12 for the women at the Rosa Khutor Extreme Park.

HIGHLIGHTS

• U.S. Olympic team member Danny Davis (Truckee, CA) earned a gold medal in his first-ever halfpipe snowboarding final at X Games Aspen Sunday, just two weeks before the 2014 Olympic Winter Games in Sochi, Russia.
• Davis led a U.S. sweep with Louie Vito (Sandy, UT) taking silver and fellow Olympic team member Greg Bretz (Mammoth Lakes, CA) bronze.
• Although one of the top names of the sport, Davis had never before advanced to a halfpipe final at X Games Aspen. He will be competing in his first Olympics in February after a serious back injury took him off the 2010 Olympic team.
• Rookie Ben Ferguson (Bend, OR) also made the final, but could not put down a complete run and finished fifth.
• The strong American showing came without defending Olympic gold medalist Shaun White (Carlsbad, CA), who took a break from X Games to focus on Sochi.
• Davis is known for his signature switch method, which he performs at the beginning of his halfpipe run, claiming that it sets him apart from many top riders that perform huge spins on every hit.
• Olympic halfpipe snowboarding is scheduled for Feb. 11 for the men and Feb. 12 for the women at the Rosa Khutor Extreme Park.

QUOTES
Danny Davis
I can’t believe it really. I’m going to ride this switch method train as long as it will last. It’s bittersweet when Shaun is not here. He’s the one to beat. But forget it; I’ll take it.

At Sochi there’s going to be a lot of flipping and spinning. There’s going to be some airtime. Well, I think that you can tell that the Americans are looking pretty darn good.

Louie Vito
Danny Davis was well deserved. It was his first final at X Games and first gold medal at X Games. It was amazing. Greg Bretz rode great. It was a lot of variety from different people. Even Ben Ferguson, he rode amazing as a rookie as well.

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