Rosalind Groenewoud and Megan Gunning gave Canada two Winter X Games medals on Friday night (Jan. 25) as national halfpipe team skiers took three of the top four spots in the women's superpipe final at Aspen.
Groenewoud took the silver with a score of 86.66 and Gunning earned bronze with an 85.0. Keltie Hansen was just off the podium with the 84.33 she was awarded by the judges.
U.S. skier Maddie Bowman scored a 91.33 on the best of her three runs to take gold.
Groenewoud, who was the event's defending champion, counted her second-run score for the podium finish. She had a great final run going that would have rivaled Bowman's top score, but the Squamish resident fell on her last hit.
"I've never fallen on that trick, my switch 540, before in competition," said Groenewoud. "It would have been my best run ever. It's really frustrating.
"I think I maybe lost a bit of focus because I knew it would have been close to first. I don't know if it would have gone my way or Maddie's way, but it definitely would have been tight."
Still, the 23-year-old said she was happy to see improvements in her skiing this week, noting that she landed the best 900 of her career on the third run.
"I really feel like my skiing is on an upward trajectory and I fell like if I land a run like I was skiing tonight I would be in a good place for the rest of the competitions this year."
Gunning, a silver medallist at the X Games three years ago, said Friday's bronze was actually more satisfying because it's been a struggle for her to find the podium over the past couple of winters.
"I knew I had it in me, and I mean it's been a long time so this means a lot more to me than the second in 2010," said Gunning.
The 20-year-old became the first woman to land a switch 900 in a contest on Friday on top of earning one of the required podium finishes for early Olympic selection. Groenewoud now has podium finishes in each of the first two targeted events for a Sochi berth.
Both Groenewoud and Gunning were feeling for teammate Hansen after she came up just shy of the podium herself.
"Keltie has been working so hard and fourth is a good position, but it's also the absolute worst," said Groenewoud. "But next event she'll be up there for sure."
No Canadian men were able to advance from Thursday's (Jan. 24) superpipe eliminations. Calgary's Noah Bowman finished ninth for the team's top finish, but only eight moved on to Friday's finals.
