‘Dance addict’ Gorgone hopes to have the moves in women’s parallel giant slalom
Reporting from Vancouver, Canada — Snowboarder Michelle Gorgone -- self-described “karaoke queen and dance addict†and owner of a most ideal action sports nickname, “Pirelli†-- is the lone representative for the United States in women’s parallel giant slalom.
The women are competing at Cypress Mountain on Friday, and the men follow a day later, which will be the final event at the venue.
There are two timed qualification runs in the morning, and 16 racers move on to the finals in the afternoon. Riders compete head to head, side by side, going down two courses, changing sides for the second run.
Should there be a split, the combined two-run time determines the winner.
Parallel giant slalom has been dominated by European women at the Olympics. France won gold two of the three times the event has been held, starting in 1998, and went one-two at the 2002 Olympics in Salt Lake.
The United States has grabbed one women’s medal: Rosey Fletcher took bronze four years ago in Turin, Italy. Other than that, the highest finish for the United States in snowboard parallel giant slalom was Lisa Kosglow’s 10th place in 2002.
Amelie Kober of Germany, a silver medalist in Turin, is considered one of the favorites, with two victories on the World Cup circuit this season.
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