Olympic Freestyle Skiing Schedule 2018: Live Stream for Monday's Halfpipe Events
United States fans will be hugely excited at the prospect of medals in the women's freestyle skiing halfpipe, as three of the country's contenders take to the snow at the 2018 Winter Olympics on Monday.
Defending Olympic halfpipe champion Maddie Bowman has her work cut out for her if she's to win the gold medal once again, with American compatriot Brita Sigourney and Canada's Cassie Sharpe ready to strike for the top prize.
Annalisa Drew has a realistic chance of grabbing a medal for the U.S. after a strong showing in qualification, as France's Marie Martinod also appeared in great form.
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The women's halfpipe will conclude on Monday night in the United States, with all three runs taking place in the early hours of Tuesday morning in the UK and Europe.
Qualification for the men's ski halfpipe is also set to begin after the medals for the ladies event are decided.
Here is how you can watch all of the action:
Date: Monday, Feb. 19
TV: NBC Universal (U.S.), BBC and Eurosport (UK)
Stream: NBC Olympics, BBC iPlayer
Monday Schedule—Olympic Freestyle Skiing Halfpipe
Women's Ski Halfpipe Final Run 1—8:30 p.m. (ET)/1:30 a.m. (GMT) Tuesday
Women's Ski Halfpipe Final Run 2—8:54 p.m. (ET)/1:54 a.m. (GMT) Tuesday
Women's Ski Halfpipe Final Run 3—9:18 p.m. (ET)/2:18 a.m. (GMT) Tuesday
Men's Ski Halfpipe Qualification Run 1—11 p.m. (ET)/4 a.m. (GMT) Tuesday
Men's Ski Halfpipe Qualification Run 2—11:53 p.m. (ET)/4:53 a.m. (GMT) Tuesday
Preview
The United States are the undisputed leaders in the world of ladies halfpipe, fielding three talented athletes chasing medals in the final at Pyeongchang 2018.
Defending Olympic champion Bowman leads the contingent; he burst onto the scene at Sochi 2014 in the inaugural run of the competition as an Olympic discipline.
Bowman has been a rampant success at the X Games and World Cup, but she has serious competition from her team-mates.
In an interview with M.B. Roberts of Parade Magazine, Bowman spoke about the expectations in her sport:
"It’s so different than it was four years ago. It’s like everyone’s a different person going into their next games. For me, I think our sport’s super unique in that we have a bunch of other competitions. We’re already in it. You never stop competing. You never take six months off. Well, we do for the summer, but we do that every year. You just keep going. We have X Games and do tours every year and we just kind of make it our lives. The Olympics is kind of just another event. There is a lot of build-up and a lot that surrounds it, but to us, it’s just another ski event."
Bowman's main rival is likely to be fellow Californian skier Sigourney, and the two women could take home gold and silver if they perform their usual magic.
However, either athlete could prevail at the top of the rankings in the final, and their podium spots could come down to the last run.
Sigourney has always possessed the talent equal to any top ski halfpipe specialist in the world, but her problems with injury have held back her career at crucial moments.
The 28-year-old arrives in South Korea in good shape, and Bowman will be looking over her shoulder in the opening runs.
Drew will also battle for a potential medal for Team USA, but with a high-class field present, she could get squeezed out of the honours. However, she posted the fourth-best score of 86.00 in qualifying, underlining her podium potential.
Teenage Chinese prodigy Kexin Zhang could mount a threat for the podium spots but her lack of experience could be crucial in the final runs.
The United States' biggest problem will be the brilliance of Canadian freestyler Sharpe.
The two-time X Games medalist has the tricks to beat anyone on her day, and if she achieves one of her best routines, she could steal the gold away from the American team.
Sharpe has the big air needed to impress judges in South Korea, but she will need to produce her greatest performance to cause an upset.
The signs look good for the 25-year-old, as she topped qualification with a best score of 93.40 points, edging Martinod into second.
Sigourney qualified in third with a total of 90.60, while Bowman cantered through to the final after scoring a comfortable 83.80.
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