Slopestyle skier Beaulieu-Marchand boosts Canada’s medal haul with bronze

Freestyle skier Alex Beaulieu-Marchand used the best run of his life to boost Canada’s medal total at the Pyeongchang Olympics on Sunday.

The 23-year-old from Quebec City captured bronze in the men’s slopestyle competition after recording 92.40 points on his second run.

“I had this crazy feeling, I was skiing so good today,” he said. “I have never skied that good in my life.”

Beaulieu-Marchand finished behind gold medallist Oystein Braaten of Norway, who scored 95.00, and silver medallist Nick Goepper of the U.S., who scored 93.60.

In slopestyle, each skier has three runs down a course that features rails and jumps. Their best score counts.

Beaulieu-Marchand skied well throughout the final, scoring 81.60 on his first run and 82.40 on his third.

“The jumps I was landing so consistently, those are jumps I have barely practised,” he said. “I did more triple flips today than I did in my entire life before.”

Teal Harle of Campbell River, B.C., had 90.00 points in his final run to finish fifth. Evan McEachran of Oakville, Ont., scored 89.40 points in sixth place.

Beaulieu-Marchand said he’s come a long way from the Sochi Games four years ago when he finished 12th.

In curling, Canada’s Rachel Homan scored three points in the ninth end and stole a single in the 10th for a 10-8 win over Switzerland’s Silvana Tirinzoni.

Tirinzoni missed both of her shots in the ninth and Homan delivered a hit to move into the lead. The Swiss skip was heavy with her final throw in the 10th to give Canada a point and the victory.

“We made some huge shots, some really precision soft-weight shots,” Homan said. “We had to make (them) and we had to make them all.”

Earlier, Calgary’s Kevin Koe dropped an 8-6 decision to Switzerland’s Peter De Cruz at Gangneung Curling Centre.

Homan, who improved to 2-3, scored a deuce in the third end but Tirinzoni delivered a light hit for three points in the fourth.

Homan drew for a pair in the fifth but her last stone in the sixth overcurled and Tirinzoni came through with a delicate tap for three.

Canada drew for a deuce in the seventh end and forced Switzerland to a single in the eighth. In the ninth, Tirinzoni’s last stone in the ninth didn’t curl enough and ended up rolling out, setting Homan up for the hit for three.

Koe, meanwhile, suffered his second straight loss to fall to 4-2. He was coming off a 5-2 defeat against Sweden a day earlier.

Later Sunday, Canada faces South Korea in men’s hockey while Olivier Rochon of Gatineau, Que., is in the final of the men’s aerials.

Top Stories

Top Stories

Most Watched Today