Winter Games 2022 - Team GB's Kirsty Muir qualifies for big air skiing final as Eileen Gu advances despite crash

Updated 07/02/2022 at 11:58 GMT

Team GB will have a chance to win their first gold medal of the 2022 Beijing Winter Games in the women's big air freestyle skiing event, after 17-year-old Kirsty Muir's efforts were enough to secure a place in Tuesday's final. Eileen Gu, one of China's biggest hopes for gold at the Games, was in danger of missing out after a crash but managed to advance.

‘Going big’ – 17-year-old Muir confirms ‘contender’ status as she makes big air final

Kirsty Muir of Team GB will compete in the big air final after progressing beyond Monday’s qualifying round at Big Air Shougang. Chinese star Eileen Gu was in danger of missing out after losing a ski but managed to advance with a solid last run.

The 17-year-old Muir had one foot in the final after her first run scored an impressive 89.25, but still had work to do to book her spot.

She followed up her blistering start with a second run, scoring 67, and a third which produced a respectable 68.25, totalling 157.50 which was enough to qualify in seventh place.

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Team GB compatriot Katie Summerhayes, 26, missed out by one place finishing 13th overall.

Her first run saw her score a disappointing 63.75 and despite a slightly better score of 69.25 on her second attempt, her third run that scored 67.25 wasn’t enough and caused her to miss out on a shot of gold by eight points.

The American-born Gu is one of the biggest names of the game after choosing to represent China over the United States but nearly got off to a disastrous start when she lost a ski on her second qualifying run after an awkward landing. That meant she needed a good score on her third run to advance, and Gu easily handled the enormous pressure, putting down a clean performance that was good enough for fifth place overall.

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