Austria’s Haemmerle edges Grondin again for Olympic gold in men’s snowboardcross
LIVIGNO, Italy (AP) — Alessandro Haemmerle of Austria and Canada’s Eliot Grondin repeated as gold and silver medalists in men’s snowboardcross at the Winter Olympics on Thursday after another close finish between the two rivals.
Grondin looked to be in position to flip the result from Beijing 2022 coming over the final roll, but Haemmerle closed the small gap over the final meters and thrust his board ahead of Grondin’s to successfully defend his title.
Haemmerle’s winning margin four years ago: 0.02 seconds.
On Thursday? Just 0.03.
Fellow Austrian Jakob Dusek took bronze, keeping France’s Aidan Chollet off the podium, when all four riders had a shot at victory approaching the finish.
2022 Olympic mixed snowboardcross champion American Nick Baumgartner, 44, reached the semifinals before being eliminated.
In snowboardcross, four riders race on a course with banks and rolling bumps to see who finishes first. The first two racers advance from each round in bracket fashion to the final.
Grondin won the 2024/25 Crystal Globe and the 2025 world champion, when Haemmerle took bronze.
On Sunday, Austrian snowboarder Benjamin Karl defended his gold in men’s parallel giant slalom.
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AP Winter Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics