In the mixed race, the men completed the course first over the bumps and jumps, followed by the women. The snowfall in Zhangjiakou made it even more difficult for snowboarders. 40-year-old Baumgartner was the fastest of the men in the final, so Jacobless, 36, was allowed to start the second with a narrow margin. The Olympic champion in singles skating was quickly overtaken by Italian Michela Mooli, but the veteran fought back and awarded Team USA another gold medal.
“Old people never get crushed,” said Baumgartner, the oldest American Winter Olympic champion since Frances Tyler bobsleigh in 1948. Tyler was 43 years old when he won gold at the four-man pop championship. Forty said, “Every athlete who is challenged by the younger generation has difficulty. It feels very good that we are showing here that we are not ready yet, that we want to work hard to make it happen.” “We’re embracing the script ‘oldies for goldies.’ Even though it’s cold, I don’t need a jacket now, because the fire inside is still burning inside of me.”
Behind Jacobless and Moyoli, the other two entrants were relegated to the final. Canada eventually crossed the finish line more than 23 seconds behind the American winner.
Thanks to the victory, the United States has overtaken the Netherlands in the medal standings and is now in third place with five gold, five silver and one bronze. The Netherlands did not participate in the mixed country competition among snowmobiles. Glenn De Blois is the only snowboarder to attend games on behalf of TeamNL. The 26-year-old Westlander finished last in his race in the eighth final on Thursday and was eliminated.
