Winter Olympics Day 7: ‘Quad God’ goes for gold in men’s skating, Ukrainian appeals Games DQ

Before dropping down for her third and final run in the women’s freeski slopestyle, Swiss skier Mathilde Gremaud already knew she had won gold.

She had watched her closest rival, Eileen Gu, fall on her final attempt, which meant no one could surpass her score.

So, draped in a Swiss flag, Gremaud performed a victory run for the fans and was able to fully enjoy the moment in front of her friends and family.

“That run was really fun, I was really smiling and giggling the whole way. That was definitely a lot of fun. I was just so happy,” she told CNN Sports on Tuesday, a day after her gold medal moment.

Things almost turned out very differently, though. Gremaud had two scares in the buildup to the competition after falling twice in practice, once just before her first proper run.

Instead of knocking her confidence, though, she said it did the opposite.

“It released a lot of pressure for me,” she added. “When that happened, I thought, ‘OK, that was the last hurdle for me on the way, now let’s try to feel as free as I can.’

“It was terrifying at first, but then the pressure released and helped me feel better.”

Monday’s competition was yet another chapter in the ongoing rivalry between Gu and Gremaud, with the pair pushing the sport to another level.

“We were able to get the best out of each other. We couldn’t have done it without the other,” Gremaud said. “Our sport is still a niche sport, but we’re trying to make it bigger. Eileen is definitely a big help for that.”