Winter Olympics 2022: 'Putting lives on the line' – Ayumu Hirano fumes at judges after triple cork blunder

ByBen Snowball

Published 12/02/2022 at 12:31 GMT

Ayumu Hirano had to drop two huge runs in the men’s snowboard halfpipe final after his historic second run failed to impress the judges. It led to a strong backlash, particularly from NBC’s Todd Richards who said the judges had “grenaded all their credibility”. Fortunately for Hirano, he still topped the standings with a 96.00 in his third and final run at Beijing 2022.

Olympic snowboard halfpipe champion Ayumu Hirano has slammed the judging during the Beijing 2022 final, reminding the officials that athletes were “putting their lives on the line”.

Hirano dropped a historic triple cork during his second run, which many observers thought good enough for an unassailable score, only for the judges to award him 91.75.

That left the Japanese ace in the silver medal position heading into the final run, which he nailed with a 96.00 to snatch a gold he felt he had already earned.

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Despite winning the title, the 23-year-old admitted the judging had left him “angry”.

"We want to have sound standards and I think we should look into exactly what the judges were looking at," said the 23-year-old.

"For the athletes, they're putting their lives on the line, they're giving it their all. So for the riders, I think some steps need to be taken to address this issue regarding the judges."

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Hirano, the silver medallist at the last two Games, dislodged Australian Scotty James at the top of the standings. Switzerland’s Jan Scherrer took bronze as three-time champion Shaun White bowed out from the sport in fourth.

"The wow factor, how you can touch people through your performance, that's important too," said Hirano.

"But at the Games, in terms of the amplitude, the grabs, we need to measure those accurately and assess those and score those accurately."

Todd Richards, a former US Olympian and seven-time Winter X Games medallist, had led the backlash over the scoring on NBC.

"Uhh, what?" Richards exclaimed when Hirano's score was shown. "What? Is there a mistake? How did that — wait a minute. There's no way. There's no way! A 91.75?

"As far as I’m concerned, the judges just grenaded all their credibility. That run — I’ve been doing this for so long. So long. I know what a good run looks like. I know the ingredients of a winning run.

"I know when I see the best run that’s ever been done in the halfpipe. Try to tell me where you’re deducting from this run. It’s unbelievable that this is even happening - it’s a travesty, to be completely honest with you. I am irate right now."

'It is absolutely incredible' - Morgan breaks down Hirano heroics at Beijing 2022

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