Fourth in qualifying to reach 12-rider final
Final to start at 3:30 a.m. on the 10th
With the Korean team having already secured its first medal in snowboarding at the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics, snowboarder Yu Seungeun, born in 2008, is now setting out in pursuit of a second medal.
On the 9th (Korea time), Yu Seungeun scored 166.50 points in the women's snowboard big air qualifying at the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics, held at the Livigno Snowpark in Italy, finishing fourth overall. Advancing comfortably to the final, which is open to the top 12 riders, she will compete for a medal starting at 3:30 a.m. on the 10th.
Yoo Seungeun smiles with satisfaction after completing a trick in the women's snowboard big air qualifying at Livigno Snowpark in Italy on the 8th (local time) during the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics. Yoo Seungeun placed fourth and advanced to the final, which will feature 12 competitors. Yonhap
Snowboard big air is an event in which riders descend a steep slope, launch off a massive jump, and perform spectacular tricks in the air. Judges evaluate and score each run based on a comprehensive assessment of jump height, the difficulty, execution, and creativity of the aerial tricks, and the stability of the landing.
Yu Seungeun placed sixth in her first run with 80.75 points, ninth in her second run with 77.75 points, and first in her third run with 88.75 points.
In this competition's big air event, rankings are determined by adding together the scores from two of the three runs, excluding the lowest score.
The same ranking method applies in the final. In the first and second runs of the final, Yu Seungeun will start ninth, in reverse order of the qualifying rankings. In the third run, the start order will again be reversed, this time based on the combined rankings after the first and second runs.
In qualifying, Zoi Sadowski-Synnott of New Zealand took first place with 172.25 points, and Murase Kokomo of Japan, last year's world champion, finished second with 171.25 points. Third-place Mia Brookes of Great Britain scored 167.00 points, just 0.5 points ahead of Yu Seungeun.
Big air was first adopted as an official Olympic event at the PyeongChang 2018 Games, and Yu Seungeun made history by becoming the first Korean athlete ever to reach the big air final.
This season, Yu Seungeun has shown a steep upward trajectory in the three International Ski Federation (FIS) Snowboard Big Air World Cup events. She finished 27th in the first event and sixth in the second, then captured a silver medal in the third and final event, further raising expectations for a medal.
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