Freestyle Canada – Freestyle Canada wins four medals, posts an additional 10 Top 10 finishes at Olympics  

Vancouver, BC – In a punishing men’s halfpipe final that saw nearly a dozen crashes, all eyes were on the men’s halfpipe duo of Mike Riddle and Noah Bowman of Alberta, who were both successful in avoiding injury and finishing in the top six.  

Bowman, the 25-year-old from Calgary, posted his top score of 89.40 on an effortless first run, performing back-to-back-to-back switch doubles, good enough to claim fifth place, his second consecutive fifth place finish at an Olympic Games.

“I knew I had a shot at the podium,” commented Bowman. “I was planning on stepping it up, making it bigger and smoother, and I just made some subtle mistakes. But I’m proud of that first run, it was one of the best runs I’ve done in my life.”

Bowman’s teammate, World Champion and defending silver medallist Mike Riddle of Sherwood Park, finished in 6^th position with a top score of 85.40. Known as ‘Mr. Consistency’ on tour, Riddle is a founding member of the Canadian national halfpipe ski team alongside coach Trennon Paynter; the two have been working together for over 15 years.

“I’m feeling awesome to be part of this final,” commented Riddle. “In Sochi, we had a lot of bad weather and no one got to put down a run they were proud of. To have these conditions today, to show our sport to the world, is amazing. I got everything I ever wanted in Sochi, so just to be here is the best feeling. I love the Olympics and I love representing Canada.”

Olympic gold medallist David Wise of the United States was successful in defending his title, capturing his second consecutive gold medal with a score of 97.20. World number one ranked skier Alex Ferreira of the United States captured the silver medal with a score of 96.00. The bronze medal was won by 16-year-old Nico Porteus of New Zealand with a score of 94.80.

With this competition complete, that concludes Freestyle Canada’s performances at the 2018 PyeongChang Games, where the team won a total of four medals and recorded an additional 10 top 10 finishes. But beyond the numbers, this Freestyle team demonstrated a lot of grit, heart and sportsmanship in their events, battling through injuries, laying down clutch performances when it counted and graciously acknowledging their competitors’ achievements.

Following the Olympics, the men’s and women’s moguls teams will stay abroad to resume their FIS World Cup Tour in Japan. The rest of Freestyle Canada’s Olympic team will return to Canada.  

Freestyle Canada Olympic Results Summary:

• Mikaël Kingsbury – Olympic gold, men’s moguls
• Cassie Sharpe – Olympic gold, women’s ski halfpipe
• Justine Dufour-Lapointe – Olympic silver, women’s moguls
• Alex Beaulieu-Marchand – Olympic bronze, men’s ski slopestyle
• Marc-Antoine Gagnon – 4^th place, men’s moguls (2^nd straight at Olympics)
• Olivier Rochon – 5^th place, men’s aerials
• Teal Harle – 5^th place, men’s ski slopestyle
• Noah Bowman – 5^th place, men’s ski halfpipe
• Andi Naude – 6^th place, women’s moguls
• Yuki Tsubota – 6^th place, women’s ski slopestyle
• Evan McEachran – 6^th place, men’s ski slopestyle
• Mike Riddle – 6^th place, men’s ski halfpipe
• Audrey Robichaud – 8^th place, women’s moguls
• Rosalind Groenewoud – 10^th place, women’s ski halfpipe
• Simon d’Artois – 13^th place, men’s ski halfpipe
• Chloé Dufour-Lapointe – 17^th place, women’s moguls
• Catrine Lavallée – 19^th place, women’s aerials
• Phil Marquis – 20^th place, men’s moguls
• Dara Howell – 21^st place, women’s ski slopestyle
• Kim Lamarre – 22^nd place, women’s ski slopestyle
• Alex Bellemare – 22^nd place, mens’ ski slopestyle
• Lewis Irving – 24^th place, men’s aerials

A complete listing of Olympic Freestyle results, can be found on our website.  

For more information on Freestyle Canada, please contact:
 
Korean Media Contact: 
Dominique Ladouceur
Manager, Media Relations
Freestyle Canada
dominique@freestylecanada.ski
Canadian Mobile: 514-576-2379
Korean Mobile: +82 10-5162-4154
 
Canadian Media Contact: 
Michèle Deslandes
Coordinator, Media Relations
Freestyle Canada
Michele@freestylecanada.ski
Mobile: 514-609-2212