U.S. Alpine skier Ted Ligety with his win at Sochi on Wednesday. 聽
The king established his dominance with a huge first-run lead in the giant slalom, and then easily held on to take gold at the Winter Games. The victory makes Ligety the first American man to win two Olympic gold medals in Alpine skiing. 聽
The win came just in time for the U.S. Ski Team, which hadn鈥檛 yet won a race at Sochi. Ligety鈥攁 strong medal favorite coming into the Games鈥攄idn鈥檛 even crack the top 10 in his first events, the downhill and the super-G.
Ligety surprised everyone when he won gold at the 2006 Winter Games, but now he’s a 29-year-old three-time defending world champion, and the pressure was on. Thankfully, Ligety excels under the spotlight. 聽 聽
“To be able to throw it down in the event I had the most pressure in, and the event I was the favorite in鈥攖o be able to do that is awesome,” Ligety . “This was really the event that I wanted to win.”
Ligety isn鈥檛 the only American skier to do his country proud recently. David Wise, of Reno, Nevada, in the first-ever Olympic men鈥檚 ski halfpipe. One of the tricks that put him on the top step of the podium? The unnatural double cork 1260, the scariest trick at Sochi. 聽聽聽