Walter Wallberg of Sweden competes during Free Style Skiing Men's Moguls Final at Genting Snow Park in Zhangjiakou, north China's Hebei Province, Feb. 5, 2022. (Xinhua/Xue Yubin)
Walter Wallberg of Sweden upset Canadian "King of Moguls" Mikael Kingsbury to win the freestyle skiing men's moguls gold at Beijing 2022.
CHONGLI, Zhangjiakou, Feb. 5 (Xinhua) -- Walter Wallberg of Sweden won the freestyle skiing men's moguls gold at the Beijing Winter Olympics here on Saturday.
The 21-year-old Wallberg scored 83.23 points from a combination of time, air and turns, becoming the first Swedish moguls skier to win a medal at the Winter Games.
Defending champion Mikael Kingsbury of Canada took silver in 82.18, and Ikuma Horishima of Japan had bronze in 81.48.
Wallberg finished third behind Horishima and Kingsbury in the final World Cup before Beijing 2022 in Deer Valley, the United States, and he was happy to come on top of the podium this time.
"Of course there was extra pressure, but I asked myself trying to do my thing, and it worked out well, so I'm super happy," said Wallberg.
Canada's Mikael Kingsbury competes in the men's moguls qualification during the Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games at the Genting Snow Park in Zhangjiakou, north China's Hebei Province, Feb. 3, 2022. (Xinhua/Hu Huhu)
Winning back-to-back world championships from 2019 to 2021, Kingsbury was expected to add another men's moguls gold for Canada, whose skiers have won the event for three consecutive editions. But adding a silver to his collection was also satisfying for the "King of Moguls."
"This is my third Olympic Games and I've had three medals. It's awesome," said Kingsbury, who has won six of the nine World Cups this season.
"I did what I wanted in the last round. I could be faster. We have to wait four years for the one-day event, it comes with a lot of pressure, but I'm just proud of the way I've done with pressure." ■
