GB’s Atkin qualifies top for halfpipe final

British freestyle skier Zoe Atkin qualified top for Saturday’s halfpipe final as she looks to add the Winter Olympic title to her World Championship crown.

The 23-year-old, also a two-time X Games champion, put down a best score of 91.50 on her first run.

Atkin is the younger sister of Izzy Atkin, who won Great Britain’s first Olympic medal on skis with her slopestyle bronze in 2018.

China’s defending champion Eileen Gu – expected to be the main rival for the gold – qualified in fifth with a score of 86.50, having crashed on her first run.

“It feels so good,” Atkin told BBC Sport. “Obviously, I was pretty nervous coming into today.

“A big event and qualifying can be more nerve-wracking than finals as you only have two runs to put it down.

Born and raised in the United States to a British father and a Malaysian mother, Atkin has competed for Great Britain her entire career and made an Olympic debut four years ago.

With her sister and family watching on at Livigno Snow Park, she put in an assured performance to start her Olympic campaign, impressing the judges with the height of her tricks above the 6.7m-high pipe.

Canada’s Cassie Sharpe, the 2018 Olympic champion and 2022 silver medallist, qualified third after her first run, but was taken away on a stretcher after a heavy crash on her second.

By qualifying top, Atkin will drop last into Saturday’s final (18:30 GMT) in the best-of-three runs contest.

“It is nerve-wracking, but it is also nice as you get to see what everyone is doing, so you can strategise a little bit,” she added.

“It gives me confidence to know the judges like my skiing, and they’re hyped to see what I bring to the finals. I am confident and feeling excited.

“The pipe is amazing. It is definitely a steep pitch, so it allows for a lot of speed, which is kind of one of my things to go big.”

Heavy snow fell on Livigno throughout Thursday, causing the men’s halfpipe qualifiers to be postponed.