When it came to the men’s snowboard halfpipe, one out of every three boarders represented the Stars and Stripes. On the podium, the U.S. doubled that number. And standing above them all was Shaun White.
The 2006 gold medalist already knew he was assured of a repeat when he stood at the top of the course for the day’s final run. But that didn’t stop him from putting on a show.
Already having clinched the gold with his first run in the finals of 46.8, 1.8 points better than Finland’s Peetu Piiroinen, White ran off a sublime run of 48.4, finishing it off with his signature trick: a 1260 Double McTwist that would make Issac Newton’s head explode.
By landing the trick — a double front-flip while spinning around 3 1/2 times — White notched the two highest scores in the competition and brought a spectacular end to a day that saw Lindsey Vonn and Shani Davis also collect gold for Team USA.
Fellow American Scott Lago’s 42.8 was good enough to get him on the podium alongside White, taking home bronze. Louie Vito finished fifth in the event for the U.S.
