Freestyle Skiing Preview: Wise Eyes Three-Peat
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(AP) -- David Wise is playing with house money.
So, ask the only man to ever win Olympic gold in the halfpipe if he feels pressure bidding for a three-peat in China and the free-spirited 31-year-old freestyle skier just laughs.
"I really, truly feel like I'm going to be the hardest guy (to beat) because I have nothing to prove," Wise said after finally locking in a spot with a runner-up finish at the U.S. Grand Prix in Mammoth Mountain, California, on Jan. 7. "I just get to go out there and enjoy the ride. I'm not going to be stressed."
He figures to be in another battle with American teammates Alex Ferreira -- who he narrowly edged for gold in Pyeongchang four years ago -- and Aaron Blunck among others. Wise, however, knows his legacy is firmly in place no matter how it goes. That freedom makes him perhaps even more dangerous.
Eileen Gu is eyeing history of a different kind. The 18-year-old California-born star -- who is just as comfortable posing for Vogue as she is creating a flexible relationship with the laws of gravity -- will attempt to medal in all three disciplines: halfpipe, slopestyle and Big Air. And she'll do it while competing for China, where her mother Yan emigrated from in her 20s.
It's a decision Gu made in part to help grow the sport in a country that's hardly a power in the Winter Games.
"It's awesome to be able to win a gold medal, there's very few things in that moment that would feel greater," Gu said. Gu wants to win. And if she can do it by playing a role in redefining what's possible for her country, all the better.
Gu is a heavy favorite to claim gold on the halfpipe and is a threat in slopestyle and Big Air, which will be making its Olympic debut in freestyle skiing.