Team USA finished in an unfamiliar spot in the snowboarding medal standings for the 2022 Winter Olympics.
Entering the Beijing Games, the United States had either won the most or finished tied for the most snowboarding medals at each Olympics since the sport debuted in 1998.
That streak came to an end in Beijing.
The United States claimed four total snowboarding medals (three golds and one silver), which was tied with Austria for the second-most. The U.S. and Austria were tied for the most golds, but were edged out by Canada for the most medals with six (one gold, one silver and four bronze).
Despite Team USA’s subpar performance overall, there were still several exciting snowboarding moments in Beijing.
From Shaun White’s final ride to Chloe Kim’s repeat and more, here’s a look back at the sport’s best highlights from the Winter Games.
Julia Marino earns Team USA’s first medal in Beijing
Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics
Watch all the action from the Beijing Olympics live on NBC
Team USA’s first medal in Beijing came from an unexpected source.
On Day 2 of the Games, the United States had a strong chance to medal with Jamie Anderson going for a three-peat in women’s slopestyle. Anderson fell short of a third consecutive gold with a ninth-place finish, but Team USA still made the podium.
Get a weekly recap of the latest San Francisco Bay Area housing news. Sign up for NBC Bay Area’s Housing Deconstructed newsletter.
On her second run, Julia Marino scored an 87.68, which was initially good enough to put her in first place.
Marino would only be topped by New Zealand’s Zoi Sadowski-Synnott, who scored a 92.88 on her third and final run. The silver was the first Olympic medal for Marino.
Shaun White’s legendary career comes to emotional end
It was the biggest storyline heading into the Games. Shaun White, the three-time Olympic gold medalist and 13-time X Games champion, was down to the final event of his legendary snowboarding career and looking to ride off into the sunset with one more magical performance.
The 35-year-old nearly saw his career come to a premature finish in Beijing, as he fell on his first of two halfpipe qualifying runs. Needing a clean run to advance to the final, the three-time Olympic halfpipe champion delivered in the clutch with an 86.25, which was the fourth-best qualifying score.
In the halfpipe final, White posted scores of 72.0 and 85.0 on his first two runs. Needing to beat an 87.25 to put himself in a medal position, White crashed out on his final run. He would finish one spot off the podium in fourth.
After his last run, White received an ovation from his fellow competitors and gave an emotional goodbye to the sport of snowboarding.
Ayumu Hirano overcomes controversial score to win halfpipe gold
In addition to White’s farewell, the men’s halfpipe final also featured some controversy and a thrilling finish.
Two-time reigning silver medalist Ayumu Hirano had a stunning second run, where he landed the rare triple cork. It was so good, NBC snowboarding analyst Todd Richards dubbed it “the best run that’s ever been done in the halfpipe.”
But the judges didn’t exactly agree. Hirano was awarded a 91.75, which wasn’t enough for him to overtake Australia’s Scotty James (92.50 score) for first. Was Hirano going to have to settle for a third straight silver when he was deserving of gold?
Not so fast. Hirano wasn’t deterred by the controversial score, hitting the triple cork again on his third run. This time, the judges rightly rewarded him with a gold medal-winning 96.0 score.
Chloe Kim successfully defends Olympic halfpipe title
Team USA failed to successfully defend its halfpipe title on the men’s side, but that wasn’t the case in the women’s event.
Chloe Kim put the women’s halfpipe final to bed early with a 94.0 on her first run. The closest anyone came to her score the rest of the way was Spain’s Queralt Castellet with a 90.25.
With the victory, Kim became the first to win multiple and consecutive golds in women’s halfpipe.
Lindsey Jacobellis secures Team USA’s first gold in Beijing
It was Lindsey Jacobellis who brought an end to Team USA’s gold medal drought in Beijing.
On Day 5, Jacobellis won the women’s snowboard cross to give the U.S. its first gold of the Games. She finished 0.21 seconds ahead of second-place Chloe Trespeuch from France.
It was a historic victory for the 36-year-old Jacobellis, who became the oldest snowboarder to medal at an Olympics and the oldest American woman to win gold at a Winter Olympics.
Jacobellis’ only other Olympic medal came at the 2006 Torino Games, where she finished second in snowboard cross after falling down late in the final. Sixteen years later, she finally got her redemption.
Lindsey Jacobellis helps Nick Baumgartner claim elusive first medal
Nick Baumgartner’s 2022 Winter Olympics quickly went from heartbreak to happiness.
In search of his first Olympic medal, the 40-year-old endured a crushing exit in the semifinals of the men’s snowboard cross.
"I'm 40-years-old, I mean, I'm running out of chances,” an emotional Baumgartner said after the elimination. “I got so much support back home and I feel like I let them down. This one stinks. This one hurts. I just feel bad."
It turned out Baumgartner only needed one more chance to capture that elusive first medal.
In the debut of the mixed team snowboard cross, Baumgartner teamed up with Jacobellis to win the event’s first-ever gold. The U.S. duo bested Italy by 0.20 seconds.
