ZHANGJIAKOU, China — u200bu200bLanding a triple cork for the first time in Olympic history, Ayumu Hirano of Japan solidified his place as the world’s best snowboarder with his final run at the Beijing Games, finishing atop a field of competitors that included the greatest of all time, Shaun White.
The triple cork was considered the next-level trick of these Olympics. Only Hirano had landed it in a competition earlier this winter, but he fell later during that run. No one had landed the triple cork and completed a contest run upright — until now.