Kearney and Baumgartner Win SBX Team Event
SIERRA NEVADA, Spain (March 13, 2017) — U.S. Snowboarding had a fantastic showing at the FIS Freestyle Ski and Snowboard World Championships snowboardcross team event on Monday. Hagen Kearney (Telluride, CO) and Nick Baumgartner (Iron River, MI) claimed the gold-medal win, while teammates Lindsey Jacobellis (Stratton Mountain, VT) and Faye Gulini (Salt Lake City, UT) earned bronze.
It was the first time the team event was held at the FIS World Championships and Baumgartner, who finished just short of the podium in the individual event on Sunday, capitalized on a second chance at gold.
Lindsey Jacobellis and Faye Gulini won the bronze medal in the team snowboardcross Monday in Sierra Nevada, Spain. (Getty Images/Agency Zoom-Laurent Salino)
“It's absolutely a redemption for yesterday,” he said after the event. “You always wanna be on the podium, but yesterday those three guys, one-two-three, they were the best. I always told Hagen, 'As soon as we team up together, we’ll win.' This is our first time teaming together, and we won!”
The men’s race was tight with plenty of passing, drafting and a finish that came down to less than a board length. “I knew I could beat everyone in the start,” said Kearney. “I knew wind would be a factor and that there would be a lot of drafting as you saw pretty much in every heat. So, I was just able to put down my best run in the finals.”
Nick Baumgartner (front right) leads Lucas Eguibar (front left) of Spain during the team snowboardcross finals in Sierra Nevada, Spain, Monday. (Getty Images-Clive Rose)
The Spanish team of Lucas Eguibar and Regino Hernandez were barely relegated to silver by the Americans while Canadians Kevin Hill and Chris Robanske took bronze.
For Jacobellis, it was her second podium of the weekend after winning her fifth World Championship title the day before. Teamed up with Gulini, it was a disqualification of the Italian team that paved their path to the podium.
French teams went 1-2 in the women’s event with Nelly Moenne Loccoz and Chloe Trespeuch taking the win and Manon Petit and Charlotte Bankes earning silver.
HIGHLIGHTS
- Nick Baumgartner and Hagen Kearney won the FIS snowboardcross team World Championship title.
- Lindsey Jacobellis and Faye Gulini earned bronze.
- Next, the alpine snowboarders have events Tuesday and Wednesday at Sierra Nevada.
QUOTES
Hagen Kearney
I knew it was going to be tough. Waking up this morning, we didn't think this race was gonna happen. I knew I could beat everyone in the start. I knew wind would be a factor and that there would be a lot of drafting as you saw pretty much in every heat. So, I was just able to put down my best run in the finals. And when that happens...
Nick Baumgartner
This feels awesome, and it's just cool that we waited until the finals of the team event to both have our best runs on this course. So, if they wanted to take the win, it was gonna mean us making a mistake, and unfortunately for them we didn't do that today.
It's absolutely a redemption for yesterday. You always wanna be on the podium, but yesterday those three guys, one-two-three, they were the best. I always told Hagen, 'As soon as we team up together, we’ll win.' This is our first time teaming together, and we won!
