GB snowboard star Brooks in Big Air final
Snowboarding sensation Mia Brooks.
one of Great Britain’s most exciting medal hopefuls at the Winter Olympics – overcame an early hiccup to seal her place in the big air final.
Despite overcooking the landing on her opening run, Brooks maintained her usual relaxed demeanour, scoring a combined 167 points from her two attempts to qualify in third place.
Although only 19 years old, an Olympic medal is the only accolade from Brooks’ collection, having already won world championships and double X Games gold – both in his preferred slopestyle.
If Brooks wins a medal of any colour in Monday’s final (18:30 GMT), he will become Britain’s youngest Winter Olympic medallist for 78 years.
“I put it down, but it was quite scary,” he told BBC Sport.
“The second run, I thought, ‘I want to land it; otherwise, it’s four years until the next one.'”
Asked how it felt to reach her first Olympic final, she said, “I think I’m more relieved that I’ve got the technique down. It’s pretty sick.
“I definitely have more to offer, but I don’t know if it’s worth the jump for it.”
Brooks was too young to compete at the last Winter Olympics four years ago but has since reached the pinnacle of her sport.
In 2023, at just 16 years old, he became Snowboarding’s youngest world champion. Along with her slopestyle gold in Georgia, Cab landed the first 1440 double grab in the women’s event to seal a victory.
Last month, he secured his second title at the X Games, the exclusive event for action sports.
“They see him as legitimately the best ever to do it,” BBC Sport commentator Tim Warwood said before the Games. “He’s a purist’s dream.
“When he’s strapped to a snowboard, you can tell what he was put on this planet to do.”
Brooks’ teammate Maisie Hill, also making her Olympic debut, finished 29th to miss the final.
While Hill’s big air campaign may be over, he and Brooks will return for slopestyle starting February 16.
Just becoming an Olympian marked an incredible feat for the 24-year-old Hill, who almost died in a training accident three years ago.
He broke multiple bones, including his spine and pelvis, and suffered a grade three injury to his liver that bled profusely after crashing into an ice wall during a training session in Switzerland in January 2023.
“Three years ago today I left hospital. I’m pretty proud of myself,” Hill told BBC Sport.
Assessing his run, he added, “I’m pretty stoked; it’s all been going really well in practice.
“I’m so happy to be here. It’s been so much fun. I’ve enjoyed it so much. I feel so blessed.
“I’m good at slopestyle anyway.”
GB’s curlers beat hosts Italy to top spot
Bruce Mouat and Jane Dodds successfully created “some drama in the stands” by defeating the hosts and Olympic curling champions Italy 9-6 in the mixed doubles.
Earlier on Sunday, Team GB’s 7-6 loss to Switzerland was Team GB’s first defeat after a brilliant start to the competition, with seven straight wins, sealing their progress to the last four with two games to spare, and the Scottish pair were keen to right that wrong.
They aimed to consolidate their dominance in the competition by securing the top spot in the round-robin table, which would give them a decisive advantage in Monday’s semi-final against either the Italians or Sweden.
The BBC will broadcast the match live at 18:05 GMT, and the final round-robin matches will confirm the British pair’s opponents before Monday.
“We are where we wanted to be, and now we are resting and recovering before the semifinals,” Dodds told BBC Sport.
The Italians were motivated to take on the GB pair, their qualification still not secured and they started strongly with two on the first leg.
However, a narrow second from Amos Mosanar and Stefania Constantini—on the ice, where she learned the game as a child— allowed Dodds to make it three games and calm the ecstatic crowd.
The Italians were in good shape in the third but only took one, and it was the same for GB in the fourth, putting them ahead at the interval.
However, Mosaner missed his last throw in the fifth in what proved to be a decisive moment. Constantini could only partially recover the situation, limiting a GB, but that steal allowed Mouat and Dodds to open up a 5-3 lead.
Italy was not done; Noise took three and went back to the front by compiling a fantastic sixth end, which resulted in the quirky venue coming rolling down the wooden bleachers.
However, Mouat and Dodds maintained their composure, taking three in the seventh end and then snatching another in the final end to seal the victory.
The other sheet results soon confirmed the Italians’ place in the final four, much to their upset.
The crowd’s enthusiasm was truly remarkable. “We knew that the crowd would act almost like a third player for them, and coming away with the win was extra special,” Dodds added.
Italy will play the USA on Monday and if they win, the two teams will meet again in the semifinals, with Moat and Dodds facing Sweden. If the Italians lose, they will face the United States, while the British pair will compete against Sweden.
Klibo won the first of a possible six golds
Norway’s Johannes Hosflot Klaebo won the first of a possible six gold medals at the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics in the 10km+10km skiathlon.
It takes the 29-year-old’s career Olympic gold tally to six, just two shy of the all-time winter record.
It is held by the Norwegian trio of biathlete Ole Einar Borndalen and cross-country skiers Bjorn Dahli and Merit Bjorgen, who are all retired.
Team GB’s Andrew Musgrave was 10th in his fifth Games – well short of his best Olympic finish of seventh in 2018 – with fellow Briton Jo Davies 16th.
After the race, Musgrave expressed his disappointment to BBC Sport.
“I felt it was too fast in the first section and straight away I was struggling – it was hot, and I was overheating.
“The first lap eliminated my chances of a strong finish.”
After avoiding a penalty for cutting a corner on the course, Mathis Desloges won silver. France won their first medal, with Norway’s Martin Löström Ninegate third.
