China’s new favorite Olympic athlete, 18-year-old freestyle skier Eileen Gu, begins a quest for what she hopes will be her second gold medal, this time in slopestyle.
Gu, who grew up in California but competes for China, is a favorite in the event, where competitors ski through a mountain course of rails and obstacles before navigating a series of three big jumps.
Qualifiers for the event were originally scheduled for Sunday, but high winds and rare blizzard conditions pushed them to Monday. Finals are on Tuesday.
Gu already has one gold medal, in big air, earned in a dramatic, come-from-behind fashion last Tuesday at an industrial park in western Beijing.