Canada wins first Olympic bronze medal in mixed snowboard cross at Beijing Games
Global News
Eliot Grondin and Meryeta O'Dine, who won the silver and bronze medals respectively in individual competition, scored again in the mixed event's Olympic debut.
Canada’s Eliot Grondin and Meryeta O’Dine won the bronze medal in mixed snowboard cross at the Beijing Winter Games on Saturday.
The event made its Olympic debut in Beijing, with pairs of one man and one woman racing back-to-back for a spot on the medal podium.
Grondin and O’Dine had already claimed the silver and bronze, respectively, in individual competition earlier in the week.
As he was in his earlier event, Grondin was the fastest out of the gate in every round of mixed competition — except for the final, where he was finally outpaced and finished third.
That meant O’Dine lost the advantage she had in earlier runs, as the women started staggered depending on the speed of their teammates.
O’Dine fell halfway through her run but still managed to cross in third position.
Fellow Canadians Liam Moffatt and Tess Critchlow were knocked out in the quarterfinals after finishing third in their heat.
