There was no podium sweep in men's freeski slopestyle this year, and for a while, it looked like there might be no medals at all for the U.S. in PyeongChang.
Then Nick Goepper came through with a clutch run on his third and final attempt.
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Sitting well outside medal position before that run, Goepper linked together strong rail sections and strong tricks on the jumps before stomping a triple cork 1440 to cap off his run.
That run scored a 93.6 and vaulted Goepper into second place. With none of the remaining riders able to outdo him, that score held up to earn Goepper and the U.S. the silver medal.
There was no touching Norway's Oystein Braaten though, who won gold with a score of 95.0 on his very first attempt.
In that run, Braaten came out swinging. He followed up technical rail sections with a left double cork 1260 off the angled kicker and then back-to-back switch double cork 1440s on the course's final two jumps.
Canada's Alex Beaulieu-Marchand secured bronze with a 92.4, narrowly keeping Great Britain's James Woods off the podium in fourth place.
Woods was taking creative lines through the rail sections and was the only rider attempting multiple triple corks in his run. He was landing a left triple cork 1440 off the angled kicker and a switch triple cork 1440 off the final jump. He was also one of the contest's more consistent skiers — he was the only competitor to score in the 90s on two separate runs — but fell just short of a medal.
Results
Gold: Oystein Braaten (NOR), 95.0
Silver: Nick Goepper (USA), 93.6
Bronze: Alex Beaulieu-Marchand (CAN), 92.4
4. James Woods (GBR), 91.0
5. Teal Harle (CAN), 90.0
6. Evan McEachran (CAN), 89.4
7. Andri Ragettli (SUI), 85.8
8. Ferdinand Dahl (NOR), 76.4
9. Elias Ambuhl (SUI), 73.2
10. Jonas Hunziker (SUI), 66.2
11. Oscar Wester (SWE), 62.0
12. Gus Kenworthy (USA), 35.0
Final
Qualifying