Canada's Alexandre Bilodeau won the men's moguls freestyle skiing title on Sunday, claiming the host nation's first gold medal of the Games and ending a long-running jinx.
Bilodeau scored 26.75 points with defending champion Dale Begg-Smith of Australia on 26.58. Bryon Wilson of the United States took bronze with 26.08 points.
"I don't believe it yet. It's been a dream since I was a little kid and it's come true," he said, saying his brother watching from the stands, who has cerebral palsy, was his inspiration.
Men's Moguls - Feb 14
Feb. 14, 2010 - Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada - epa02032069 Alexandre Bilodeau of Canada competes in the qualifying run in the Men's Moguls on Cypress Mountain, north of Vancouver, at the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Games, 14 February 2010. Photo via ZumaPress.
"I can't think. It's too good to be true. There are more golds to come for Canada. It's just the beginning of a good party in Canada."
"There are probably 10 guys that could have been on top of the podium today," Bilodeau said, "and I'm glad it was me. I was nervous but I was comfortable. Probably the most comfortable I've ever been . . . I went for it."
Begg-Smith, a key figure in these parts, took the second place. Born in Vancouver, he and his brother quit the Canadian ski team as teenagers because they claimed that they weren't given time to pursue their burgeoning computer business. After getting his Australian citizenship, he won the Olympic gold medal in 2006.
"I skied the way I wanted to ski and that's all I control. There were a lot of good runs today and it just depends on the day how you do so I'm obviously happy to ski the way I did," said Begg-Smith.
"I think it's great that Canada won gold and the crowd was really happy with it and everybody went crazy," added Begg-Smith, who leads the overall World Cup moguls standings.