Medal hopes raised after Zoe Atkin qualifies fourth for freestyle halfpipe final

Zoe Atkin raised hopes of a late change in Great Britain’s Winter Olympic fortunes after qualifying in fourth place for Friday’s freestyle halfpipe final in Zhangjikou.

The 19-year-old, the younger sister of Izzy Atkin who won a bronze medal in ski-slopestyle in Pyeongchang, top-scored with 86.75, just three-quarters of a point off third-placed Kelly Sidaru of Estonia.

“I’m really excited to be in the finals tomorrow,” said the 19-year-old, who is based in Park City, Utah, and a won a bronze medal in last year’s World Championships in Aspen.

“I was really nervous. You are even more nervous on qualifiers day than on finals day. I just wanted to put down a clean run and after that I was like, ‘phew, all the pressure is off’.”

Atkin revealed she feared her Olympic debut might not have happened: “I had a couple of mishaps,” she added. “I missed my flight on the way here and I forgot to set an alarm this morning.”

Atkin’s sister Izzy was also named in the team for Beijing but despite travelling to the Chinese capital, she was forced to withdraw from both Big Air and slopestyle events due to injury.

Chinese superstar Eileen Gu, who is looking to add to the gold and silver medals she has already claimed at this Games, topped the qualifying standings on 95.5 points with Canada’s Rachael Karker one point behind.