A day after winning a gold medal in the men's snowboard halfpipe, Ayumu Hirano addressed the judging controversy that threatened to leave him an Olympic bridesmaid for a third time.
On Friday, Hirano landed the first triple cork in Olympic competition, he did it three times, one in each of his runs down the Genting Snow Park pipe.
The triple cork jump -- or three off-axis flips -- was only landed in competition for the first time in December when Hirano did it on the Dew Tour.
His first run down the halfpipe in Zhangjiakou, China, ended with a fall and 33.75 points, but his second was near perfect with him landing the triple cork 1440 as well as three more double corks with rotations between 1440 and 1220 on each.
The run earned him 91.75 and put him into second, bringing boos from the crowd at the venue and an incredulous reaction online.
"You judges just grenade'd all credibility," tweeted snowboard pioneer, former Olympian and now commentator on U.S. television, Todd Richards.
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He added later, "Riders are literally risking their lives for these tricks. Nobody can touch Ayumu with the triple. It's the riskiest move ever performed in a halfpipe. You have to reward that."
Hirano said the score left him scratching his head and just increased his determination to not leave with a silver medal like he did at the 2014 and 2018 Olympics.
"I was irritated with the second run score, but that anger helped me concentrate more than usual. It motivated me in a good way," Hirano said later.
That extra push led him to put down an even more perfect run in his final shot at gold. He landed everything and was rewarded with a 96.00 score and a gold medal advantage over Australian Scotty James.
A day later, having reflected on his achievement and the bumpy road he took to get there, Hirano said he believes the sport of snowboard has progressed to the point that these issues should be a thing of the past.
"In the world of competition, there should be a way to measure height and grabs (numerically). Athletes are taking risks, so we should be evaluated and judged more clearly," he said.
"We are in an era where we should (build) a new system that can measure everything."
Hirano said snowboard has clear delineation between freeriding and competition, and that such variety is the spice of the sport. The separation is necessary and something to be valued.
"Snowboarding is attractive because it is a limitless tool of expression, with its various styles and free spirit," he said.
He just wants expression in competition to be judged clearly and fairly.
