Eileen Gu seals yet another FIS World Cup gold as Chinese youngsters Zhang Kexin and Su Yiming impress

The 18-year-old wins third half-pipe World Cup gold of the season to extend her overall FIS rankings lead – ‘had a nice lil full circle moment’

Men’s snowboarder Su, 17, finishes sixth overall after a memorable Calgary run – ‘such a crazy week’

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Eileen Gu Ailing after her final run at the FIS World Cup women’s freestyle skiing halfpipe final event in Calgary, Canada. Photo: AP

Published: 8:15pm, 2 Jan 2022Updated: 5:23pm, 18 Apr 2022

Beijing 2022 Olympics favourite Eileen Gu Ailing led the way in an inspired Team China outing at a blistering FIS World Cup in Calgary, Canada on Saturday.

The 18-year-old reigning world champion won her third freeski half-pipe World Cup gold of the season – her second in three days – despite almost losing her passport days before the event.

Gu won top honours with her best score of 92.80, sealing maximum FIS points to extend her overall lead in the half-pipe and freeski rankings. She won the women’s half-pipe final two days prior with a 96.80.

Rachael Karker, of Canada, and Hanna Faulhaber, of the US, finished second and third, respectively, while Chinese teammate Zhang Kexin, 19, finished in fifth overall with 83.0 points. Fellow teen Li Fanghui finished seventh, with Wu Meng 13th and Zhang Ziyi 23rd after failing to reach the final.

“Whaaa 2 World Cup wins in 3 days!! Won my first pipe World Cup here last year, so had a nice lil full circle moment,” Gu said in an Instagram post of her medal and Calgary Snow Rodeo hat.

Gu adds more silverware to her Big Air World Cup half-pipe win from December. She has now won World Cup titles in Steamboat, Copper Mountain and the Dew Tour in the space of a month, continuing her hot streak of winning in major freeski events since her double gold at the world championships last February.