Parrot takes gold in Big Air season-opener

Olympic medallist Max Parrot claimed victory in the first snowboard World Cup big air event of the season in Kreischberg, Austria.

The 26-year-old Canadian - who picked up slopestyle silver at PyeongChang 2018 - hadn't competed since the X Games in March, but found his best form to top the ranks with a score of 165.00 points.

Sweden's Sven Thorgren led the way after an impressive first jump and agonisingly missed out on gold by just one point overall, while Norway's Mons Roisland came home third.

Parrot - who beat cancer in 2019 - said: "It wasn't an easy final, because I fell on my second run pretty hard.

"I'm just happy to put down my runs tonight and do the performance I was able to do."

Having kicked off the campaign in perfect fashion, Parrot will look to strengthen his grip on top spot in the overall big air rankings at the next World Cup event in Calgary, Canada, in March, after February's World Championships in China.

Sportsbeat 2021