He has competed within the Winter Video games twice earlier than, however this yr will look completely different for the freestyle skier Gus Kenworthy. He has a brand new group and a brand new Olympic occasion: halfpipe snowboarding.
Kenworthy, who was born in Britain and grew up in Telluride, Colo., stated he started fascinated with competing for his start nation in 2012, as he ready for the Sochi Video games. A twin citizen, Kenworthy skied for the USA on the 2014 and 2018 Video games.
Regardless of qualifying for each slopestyle and halfpipe snowboarding in 2014, he misplaced his spot for halfpipe when it was given to a teammate at a coach’s discretion earlier than the Video games. Competing solely in slopestyle, Kenworthy received the silver medal in Sochi.
He certified once more in slopestyle in 2018 however narrowly missed making the halfpipe group. Kenworthy stated he had been hoping for a distinct end result — or a training choice in his favor this time.
“There’s a fatigue issue” in enduring the rigorous course of of constructing the U.S. group, Kenworthy stated, including that he felt he had fully exhausted himself working to qualify in each disciplines.
Deciding to ski for Britain meant he may extra seamlessly lock within the halfpipe occasion. “I obtained to coach for the Video games, versus prepare to qualify to compete,” Kenworthy stated. He stated he had felt much less strain, permitting him to extra narrowly deal with his snowboarding.
“That could be a completely different expertise from what I’ve had the previous two Video games,” he stated. “So it does really feel like I’m beginning contemporary.”
The choice, which he introduced in 2019, additionally had an emotional issue. It was a solution to honor his largest fan: his mom.
“I need to do that for my mother,” stated Kenworthy, whose mom is from a city outdoors Liverpool, in northwest England. “She bent over backward to make every part occur for me and actually make my goals come true.” He stated he had a imaginative and prescient of holding up the British flag from the rostrum in her honor.
The boys’s halfpipe competitors will start with qualification on Thursday, and the finals will likely be held on Saturday on the Genting Snow Park in Zhangjiakou.
Kenworthy stated he was proud to be again for a 3rd Olympics, a uncommon accomplishment for athletes who endure the bodily pressure of freestyle snowboarding.
“I’ve a run in thoughts that I feel is exclusive to me and exhibits how I ski and the way I method halfpipe,” he stated. “I simply need to land the run — and I do suppose that if I land it, it should do nicely. However I don’t need to put a lot emphasis on what meaning.”
The one aim, he stated, was to take pleasure in that second of lastly competing in halfpipe on the Olympics.
Medals apart, Kenworthy’s profession has begun to transcend the game. He has gained a following in the USA since 2015 when he got here out as homosexual — a rarity on the earth of maximum sports activities — and booked performing and modeling gigs in “American Horror Story” and a Prada promoting marketing campaign.
“After I look again at my profession, attending to compete as an out athlete and attending to be an advocate for the LGBTQ neighborhood has meant extra to me than any medal or accolade ever may,” he wrote on Instagram, reflecting on starting his remaining Olympic Video games. “I really feel eternally grateful for this second, this sport and this life.”
