Sebastien Toutant proved once again that he’s got what it takes to beat the best, cleaning up in the X Games slopestyle in Aspen to take gold. His best friend (and fellow Canadian) Mark McMorris finished in second, with US young gun Tyler Flanagan taking the third podium spot. It was Toutant’s first run that took the title, as this combination of sick rail tricks and double cork madness scored him a 93. Despite falling on his second and third runs, it was enough. After two runs, it looked like Chas Guldemond would be making the podium, with Tyler Flanagan just ahead of him, but Mark McMorris’ final effort proved better than both of theirs, putting him in the silver medal position. Torstein Horgmo, who had come through second in practise, didn’t manage to hold onto any of his runs, putting him down in sixth ahead of Halldor Helgason and Eric Willet in the 8-man final.
Meanwhile Shaun White, despite landing two of his qualifying runs failed to make the final at all! Perhaps realising he didn’t have the tricks to make it, Shaun threw down a super-stylee third run, and admitted that he no longer has what it takes to get in the top few in slopestyle. Still, because he’s Shaun, when he says he’ll be back, you know he means it. And when you see what his steely determination has turned him into in the halfpipe, we can only imagine what he’ll be like as a rider when he returns to slopestyle.
Hit more to watch Mark McMorris and Tyler Flanagan’s runs, and see Shaun’s post-match interview.