COPPER MOUNTAIN, CO (Dec. 22) – Rookie rider Taylor Gold (Steamboat Springs, CO) led a U.S. sweep with Greg Bretz (Mammoth Lakes, CA) and Ben Ferguson (Bend, OR) in the halfpipe final at the Sprint U.S. Grand Prix at Copper. Gold put down his winning score during the very first run of the competition after barley qualifying for the final in 16th. The entire international field was not able to top Gold’s run, which resulted in his career-first World Cup victory. All spots on the men’s Olympic team are still up for grabs, and the competition will be at an all time high when the Sprint U.S. Grand Prix goes to Breckenridge Jan. 8-11.
HIGHLIGHTS
- Rookie rider Taylor Gold (Steamboat Springs, CO) led a U.S. sweep with Greg Bretz (Mammoth Lakes, CA) and rookie Ben Ferguson (Bend, OR) in the halfpipe final at the Sprint U.S. Grand Prix at Copper.
- Gold put down his winning score during the very first run of the competition after barley qualifying for the final in 16th.
- The entire international field was not able to top Gold’s run, which resulted in his career-first World Cup victory. This showed the strength of the up-and-coming rookies like Gold and Ferguson and how they are pushing the veteran riders and progressing the sport this Olympic season.
- Saturday’s results kept Bretz in the lead in the qualification standings while boosting Gold into second above Shaun White (Carlsbad, CA), who chose not to compete Saturday in order to focus on the slopestyle competition on Sunday. Ferguson also moved up in the standings into third on Saturday.
- Snow fell throughout the day, which made the halfpipe a bit slower than normal and prevented many riders from stomping tricks cleanly.
- Taylor’s winning run: Backside 540, frontside 1260, double Michalchuk, frontside double cork 1080, cab 1080.
- Bretz’s second-place run: Frontside double cork 1080, cab double cork 1080, frontside 900, backside 900, frontside 1080.
- Despite the lead by Bretz and Gold, all spots on the men’s Olympic team are still up for grabs, and the competition will be at an all time high when the Sprint U.S. Grand Prix goes to Breckenridge Jan. 8-11.
QUOTES
Taylor Gold
My approach is just landing runs. I’m not really focused on the result, and I’m still not going to be focused on the result. I’m just want to land my run and ride my best.
I’m just going to let it flow and see what happens. If I go (to Sochi), I’ll be super excited.
Greg Bretz
I think I just locked it down today. I can’t really ask for anything better. They take the top two results, and in my first two contests my top two results are first and second. I’ve been working really hard this summer and it’s finally paying off.
RESULTS
Men’s Official Results
STANDINGS
Official Qualification Standings
LINKS
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