The 14th annual Winter X Games will feature more than 100 women from across the globe competing for medals, prize money and the pride of being at the top of their sport.. Hosted for the ninth consecutive year at Buttermilk Mountain at Aspen/Snowmass, ESPN''s action sports showcase is sure not to dissapoint fans with its uncomprobable excitement and fierce competition.
ESPN and ESPN2 will televise 24.5 hours of live programming Jan. 28-Jan 31, while ESPN2 will present daily late-night highlight programs from Jan. 28-Jan. 31 Additionally, the Winter X Games will also be televised on ESPN's International networks to 172 countries and territories in Latin America, the Pacific Rim, Middle East, Africa, Israel and Canada. We will be following all the action from Aspen as the results unfold.
Final Results: (via ESPN)
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Bronze medal winner Grete Eliassen
shows her support with her Foundation
sticker on her skis at X Games 14 |
Skiing Slopestyle Women's Final:In last year’s inaugural Women’s Slopestyle Skiing competition, Kaya Turski lost a ski in her first run, but was still able to grab the bronze medal. Following the competition she told the press that she had hoped for a better result in 2010.
Those hopes came true, as Turski’s third run that resulted in a score of 96.66 and the gold medal, the first gold awarded during Winter X Games 14.
“I can’t even explain what this means,” Turski said. "I have been working for this my entire life. To win X Games is a dream come true."
Breckenridge Colorado’s Keri Herman grabbed the silver with last year’s silver medalist, Grete Eliassen, winning the bronze.
“It feels pretty unreal, I can’t believe it,” Herman said. “Everyone killed it today. We had perfect weather and I feel so lucky to be standing up here.”
Skiing Slopestyle uses the same course as snowboarders with skiers showcasing their freestyle skills on a variety of obstacles including rails, kickers, jumps and grabs.
Skiing SuperPipe Women's Final:
In front of a large contention of family and friends, Aspen, Colorado’s own Jen Hudak took the gold in the Women’s Skiing SuperPipe competition.
“This is the best night of my life,” Hudak said of her performance. “My family and friends were out to support me tonight and I couldn’t be more excited.”
“It has been a dream of mine to win the X Games for six years. To finally win it after six years is a dream come true. I am still in shock actually.”
Hudak improved on last years silver medal with second run that included a 900, a 540, an alley-oop 540 and finished off with a 740 giving her a score of 92.33.
17-year old Megan Gunning, who led the competition following the elimination round, finished second with a score of 90.66.
Her fellow competitor from Calgary, Alberta, Canada – Roz Groenwould – took home the bronze with a score of 86.00.
Sarah Burke, who had won the last three gold medals in the event, finished sixth.
The Skiing SuperPipe event represents the progression of the sport and showcases the best pipe riders in the world. The 540-foot long, 22-foot deep SuperPipe is 75 feet from lip-to-lip with a pitch of 18 degrees. This translates into maximum amplitude and speed for the athletes to perform their tricks.
Snowboard X Women's Final:
The third-consecutive gold medal in Women’s Snowboarder X didn’t come easy for Lindsey Jacobellis as she had to come from behind and hold off a hard-charging Helene Olafsen to capture the crown.
“It’s nice to do well at X Games,” Jacobellis said. “I seem to always have strong crowd support here. So it is great to win for them.”
Olafsen led the group out of the gates and through the first couple of turns, but once the group made their way past the rollers, Jacobellis gained speed and took over first place from Olafsen and held on defeating Olafsen 1:38.145 to 1:38.664
“I think the course was really good, I loved it,” Olafsen said. “I really wanted to win but I will take second.”
Joanie Anderson was the bronze medal winner with a time of 1:43.018.
Snowboarder X consists of a downhill course over 3,500 feet long, filled with tabletop jumps, banked turns, rollers and gaps. A fusion of motocross and downhill racing, Snowboarder X represents the versatility of snowboarding athletes today.
| Snowboard SuperPipe Women's Final:
Gretchen Bleiler and Kelly Clark put on a show that many of the one-day record crowd of 34,500 will not soon forget.
The two Olympians battled through all three rounds, but Bleiler’s second round score of 96.66 edged Clark’s third round score of 96.00.
“This feels amazing, I am about to cry,” an emotional Bleiler said. “This means the world to me and provides a bunch of momentum heading into Vancouver.”
Bleiler’s winning run included a front side 900 to a backside 540, a Crippler 720 into a Cab 720, ending with a double-grab 540.
The win was a bit of redemption for Bleiler, whose second round fall in last year’s competition forced her to withdraw. But this year she was back on the medal stand and happy to share her win with the hometown crowd.
“This means everything and I couldn’t have done it without you guys Aspen,” Bleiler exclaimed.
Clark said that her silver medal was a great launching point for the rest of the season.
“I am happy with my place,” Clark said. “I landed everything I wanted to and it is great momentum heading into Vancouver.”
Fellow Team USA Olympian Hannah Teter received the bronze medal with a score of 70.00.
The Snowboard SuperPipe competition is arguably one of the most exciting competitions in the world. The 567-foot long, 22-foot deep “U-shaped” SuperPipe is 66 feet from lip-to-lip with a pitch of 18 degrees. This world-class pipe allows for maximum amplitude and speed, giving the riders space to perfect progressive tricks, like the double cork.
Skiing Skiier X Women's Final:
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As the gates dropped for the final of Women’s Skier X, reigning champion Ophelie David was one of the last out of the gates. But as the race progressed, so did David as she took over the top spot off the alter jump claiming her fourth consecutive Skier X gold.
“I knew it was going to be super hard to pass on the lower part,” David said. “I tried to push hard on the start but missed the first kicker and thought, ‘ooh la la.’ But I remembered that I had to relax and I still had opportunities to pass her. I had to work hard on rollers make myself angry and push as hard as I could.”
Her time of 1:34.037 clinched her four-peat - the first time that has been done by a skier in any event in Winter X Games history. David was quick to point out that her success had a great deal to do with the X Games environment.
“I think it is the atmosphere and the people cheering for us,” David said. “I love these slopes, I love this place, and I love this course. It’s all of that put together.”
Canada’s Ashleigh McIvor, who led most of the race, grabbed the silver medal with a time of 1:34.187. Her fellow countrywoman Kelsey Serwa grabbed the bronze with a time of 1:34.557.
“You want to win, but Ophelie is the best in the world,” McIvor said. “Second is still good with me. She drafted me and flew by. I was just glad it was only her.”
Skier X is a fast and furious course race that features skiers racing over tabletop jumps, banked turns, rollers and gaps. A fusion of motocross and downhill racing, Skier X represents one of the most demanding competitions in ski racing today.
Snowboard Slopestyle Women's Final:
Jenny Jones went into her last run knowing that if she wanted to repeat in Women’s Snowboard Slopestyle, that she would have to put up a big number to surpass Jamie Anderson.
The task wasn’t going to be easy, as Jones has been nursing a sore knee all week. But despite the injury, her frontside 540, cab 540 and frontside 720 on the Money Booter was good enough for a winning score of 92.66.
“It feels great, it really does,” Jones said as the smile on her face extended from ear-to-ear. “It is a totally different experience this time because my knee was so sore and everything. I didn’t really think I was going to get anywhere. So I am still a little bit in shock that I came in first.
Anderson grabbed the silver with a score of 89.33 and Janna Meyen-Weatherby’s 75.66 won her the bronze.
Much of the post competition talk was about the bronze medalist Meyen-Weatherby. On all three of her rides, Meyen-Weatherby attempted a feat not done before.
“Jenny rode really well and as did Janna,” Anderson said. “To try the cab 900 is really impressive. No girl has ever done that trick, so definite respect to her.”
Snowboard Slopestyle tests a rider’s ability to handle a variety of terrain by executing freestyle maneuvers down a course filled with a variety of features. The Winter X Games 14 contains rails, hips, tabletops and a variety of jumps, allowing the riders to combine big air and technical tricks into one run.