Zoi Sadowski-Synnott was unable to complete eitherof her runs in the women's slopestyle finals. Photo / Getty Images.
Zoi Sadowski-Synnott was unable to complete eitherof her runs in the women's slopestyle finals. Photo / Getty Images.
Young Kiwi snowboarder Zoi Sadowski-Synnott was left to mull on her mistakes after finishing 13th on a windy slopestyle course at the Winter Olympics in PyeongChang.
The 16-year-old was unable to complete either of her two runs on Monday, as American Jamie Anderson defended her title as Olympic Games champion.
Sadowski-Synnott went into the event as the 12th seed but admitted she struck some trouble on the rail section of the course.
"In the top section from the first rail I just didn't feel it," she said after the event. "Then I got to the second feature on the second rail and it was just horrid. I tried to keep going and knuckled so bad off that first jump - kind of hurt my arm a wee bit - then that run was over.
Zoi Sadowski-Synnott finished 13th in the women's slopestyle snowboarding. Photo / Getty Images
"I went to my second run, and screwed up the second rail again and was like 'may as well keep going' so I went, and screwed up the third feature which sucks because that was the one I had on lock."
The start of the event was delayed by over an hour due to high winds. With the riders having to take to the air, high winds can make riding unsafe and can hamper vision.
The slopestyle wasn't the only event of the day affected by the wind. Kiwi Alice Robinson was set to compete in the women's giant slalom skiing, however the event was postponed and will now be run on Thursday.
American Jamie Anderson defended her title as Olympic Games women's slopestyle champion. Photo / Getty Images
Anderson didn't seem too bothered by the breezy conditions, however. The 27-year-old didn't need to complete her second run to win the gold medal, with her first run score of 83.00 proving to be too much for her competitors to overcome.
The battle to fill out the podium was a tight one. American Jessika Jenson and Norwegian Silje Norendal both sat in medal spots during the late stages of the competition, but Canadian Laurie Blouin and Finland's Enni Rukajarvi won silver and bronze respectively.
Rukajarvi adds to her silver medal in the 2014 Games, while Blouin claimed her first Olympic medal.
Sadowski-Synnott didn't shy away from admitting she'd hoped for better in the event, but was now set to turn her attention to the big air competition.
"I was really hoping to land a run here. But hopefully next week in big air I can show a bit more of what I've got.
The big air competition was set to get underway on February 19, with Sadowski-Synnott again the sole Kiwi in the event.
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