Long after the finale of this compelling women’s freeski slopestyle competition, Kirsty Muir was still struggling to process the cruellest loss of her young career.
“I’ll be proud of myself in a minute,” the 21-year-old Team GB star told one reporter, through the sobs and the pain. “But I’m in a bit of a hole right now.”
“I got to see the family, they were hugging me a bit too tightly that I was getting a bit claustrophobic,” she told another, as the tear ducts opened again. “It was lovely to see them and know they are so proud of me, no matter what.”
Everyone knows that fourth place is the worst place to finish at an Olympics. But, for Muir, this result stung like pouring a gallon of antiseptic on an open sore.
Coming into this final, Muir knew she was a strong favourite for a medal. She had won this event at the X Games two weeks with a score of 93.66, before qualifying third here. But, on this day, it just wasn’t to be.
Instead Swiss star Mathilde Gremaud defended her Olympic title with a score of 86.96pts, while China’s Eileen Gu repeated her second place in Beijing with 86.48. But while she knew she wasn’t at her best, Muir still knew that bronze was there for the taking.
Slopestyle involves three runs, involving skiing on rails before attempting three big tricks, with the highest-scoring run counting. And having fallen on her first run, and made a minor mistake on her second, Muir approached her final attempt knowing she needed to beat the 76.46 by Canada’s Megan Oldham to make the podium.
The rails went well. The first trick was nailed. Then came a wobble on the second. It meant Muir needed to be perfect on a final jump, a huge double cork 1440, to give herself a chance. She was – and the reaction of the British team afterwards suggested it might be enough.
But after a long wait, the judges’ had other ideas. Muir had scored 76.05 – and missed out on bronze by 0.41 points.
“I’m obviously a bit sad,” she admitted. “It’s just a tough place to be, fourth. I had a bit of difficulty in the first two runs. I got a bit annoyed at myself after my second run, and I’m really happy that I managed to pull myself back before my third run.
“On the second jump, I was trying for a mute grab in my double just because it just makes it a little bit harder,” she said. “And I was really pushing for that extra boost that that might give me. And today it slipped away from me.
“So I went back to safety to just get a run down and get my 14 in the last jump, because that’s one of my biggest tricks.”
Muir will have another chance to medal when she goes in the Big Air next week, an event in which she finished fifth in Beijing. But, for now, this defeat has hit much harder than four years ago.
“It feels completely different from 2022 because the last time I was 17, I put the tricks down to come fifth, the best I’d ever done them,” she said. “I was so proud of myself. It’s hard to say how I’m feeling right now. I’ve got a lot to process.
As she spoke, Oldham was revelling in her surprise bronze medal. “I can’t even believe it, it’s crazy,” she said. “I’ve been dreaming about this for so long. I had a concussion two months ago and wasn’t really sure if I’d be able to ski.” The Canadian’s smile was a picture. The contrast with Muir could hardly have been greater.
