Beijing Winter Olympics: Snowboarder Zoi Sadowski-Synnott in Women's Snowboard Big Air Qualification. Video / Sky Sport
All you need to know ahead of the women's snowboard big air final at 2.30pm today:
Zoi Sadowski-Synnott has put herself in the best position to claim an Olympic gold medal double at today's snowboard big air final.
Sadowski-Synnott's father Sean Synnott told RNZ she "pulled it out of the bag again" on the last run in yesterday's qualification and he was hoping she would be able to pull something out of the bag again today.
"I would say she's 100 per cent focused on the job at hand. We have the sort of unwritten rule that we go radio silent when she's in competition mode. So that's where we are at. We get the occasional text and maybe a photo of her lying in bed cuddled up to her gold medal."
She had said many times that her preferred event was the slopestyle because it gives a better illustration of her all round ability and full body work, he said.
Her father had no idea if she has another trick up her sleeve for today's competition, the only hint was that she pulled a 1280 at the X Games so there could be a 1280 or two 1280s in different directions. "We will just have to wait and see."
Zoi Sadowski Synnott of Team New Zealand in action. Photo / Getty
Going last in a final was a preferred position to be in as you got to see what everyone else was doing first, he said.
Synnott and the rest of the family would all be down in the fan zone in Wanaka along with other families whose kids were also competing to watch her go for her second gold medal today. "It's a pretty amazing experience and best of luck to Zoi today."
The contenders
Sadowski-Synnott will be one of the favourites for gold as the top qualifier and gold medallist at the X Games earlier this year. But she will be pushed by many of her competitors who are no strangers to the big stage.
The Japanese trio of Murase Kokom, Iwabuchi Reira and Onitsuka Miyabi will all be medal contenders and all come from, as Sadowski-Synnott put it yesterday, the best snowboard team in the world.
Fourth placed qualifier Laurie Blouin of Canada and Australian Tess Coady, who qualified in seventh and shared the podium with Sadowski-Synnott with bronze in the slopestyle, have plenty of tricks in their arsenal.
And then there's Austrian Anna Gasser, who is the defending big air Olympic champion from four years ago. Gasser finished sixth in qualifying but is experienced, knows what it takes to win at the biggest stage and will be right up there among the leaders in the final.
Jamie Anderson of the USA, one of the biggest names in snowboarding who took out silver in PyeongChang four years ago, bowed out at the qualification stage.
Zoi Sadowski-Synnott after her qualification run. Photo / Getty
4pm: Women's alpine skiing, downhill final (Alice Robinson)
5.30pm: Men's freeski slopestyle qualification (Finn Bilous, Ben Barclay)
How to watch
Sadowski-Synnott's final (Sky Sport channel 54) and the rest of the Kiwis in action will be live on Sky Sport. Prime will have free-to-air coverage from 2.25pm. Live streaming is available on Sky Sport Now.
The Herald will have live updates of today's action on nzherald.co.nz and the NZ Herald app.
