Australian Snowboarders Miss Podium Finish in Dramatic Mixed Team Event
The Australian contingent at the Winter Olympics faced a heart-wrenching scenario on Monday during the mixed team snowboard cross event in Livigno. What had seemed like a guaranteed second medal for Australia turned into a painful fourth-place finish, all thanks to a dramatic late-race incident. While Olympic champion Josie Baff and her partner Adam Lambert ultimately missed out on the podium, Lambert remained remarkably philosophical about the outcome.
The pair had been in sublime form throughout the competition. Baff, in particular, had showcased the skills that earned her an Olympic gold medal, impressing with her riding and confidently guiding them through to the final. In the mixed snowboard cross format, the men compete first, with the women’s start time then determined by the deficit their male partner incurred. This meant Lambert’s primary task was to keep pace with the leading riders, ensuring Baff had a manageable gap to overcome.
Up until the final corner, Lambert was right on the tail of Italian rider Lorenzo Sommariva, exactly where he needed to be. However, disaster struck.
The Crucial Collision
Describing the incident, Lambert explained the sequence of events: “So I came around turn five, and I had speed on Lorenzo. I would have preferred to have been on his left. But unfortunately, I kind of just landed on his right, landed on his tail a little bit and then I had to go inside in turn six, and Lorenzo also was as far inside as he could be. My nose mounted his tail, and his tail slipped out. I lost all contact with my toe-side edge. So that’s what set me down.”
This fall meant Baff was assigned the maximum possible time deficit, a significant 4.16 seconds, calculated based on the length of the course. Marooned at the top, watching her rivals surge ahead, Baff acknowledged the daunting task. “I was thinking, wow, 4 seconds is a really long time,” she admitted.
A Miraculous Comeback Falls Short
While Baff had impressively clawed back half a second in the semi-final, demonstrating her strong form and confidence, overcoming a 4-second deficit against Olympic-calibre competitors was an almost insurmountable challenge. “I knew that I was strong, my starts were way better today — I think I was less nervous and I was kind of going back to my normal starts,” Baff reflected.
She held onto a sliver of hope, driven by her never-give-up attitude. “So I was like, ‘You know what, anything’s possible and I’m going to trust that these three might have some contact lower down and I want to be in that race if anything does happen.’ I guess that was the mindset here, and also, I don’t ever give up, not until I cross that line.” Baff’s determination was evident as she pushed hard, even seeing herself closing the gap. “I just kind of went in with that [attitude], and I could see, I was like, ‘Wow, I’m getting closer. I actually am getting closer. I thought this could still work.’ But unfortunately, 4 seconds is a long time.”
Lambert, while acknowledging Baff’s incredible talent, conceded that even her exceptional abilities couldn’t bridge such a vast gap. “I know Josie could have pulled back half a second — she probably could have pulled back a second and a half, she’s been riding so well — but 4 seconds is just slightly too much.”
The Sting of Fourth Place
The result left Australia in the most frustrating of positions: fourth in a four-team final. As the other three teams celebrated their hard-earned medals, basking in the cheers of the crowd, Lambert and Baff navigated the mixed zone, the disappointment palpable.
These Games had already been a challenging ordeal for the snowboard cross athletes, and Lambert, in particular, had faced significant emotional hurdles. The airlift evacuation of his roommate and best friend, Cameron Bolton, due to a broken neck, had undoubtedly taken a toll on the 28-year-old, contributing to his mixed form and an early exit in the men’s individual competition.
To have come so close to an Olympic medal, only to have it slip away in such a manner, must have been a bitter pill to swallow. Yet, despite the obvious disappointment, Lambert maintained a remarkably composed and positive outlook.
A Philosophical Perspective
“It’s a tough place to be, fourth at the Olympics,” he stated. “But we’re also at the Olympics, and we’re also in the finals. There’s only so many people that get to be on the podium, and I’m proud to have been in the final to begin with.”
Lambert, who only secured his first FIS World Cup victory this year after eight seasons on the circuit, suggested it was “too soon” to dwell on the final corner incident. His extensive experience in the sport, often involving years of striving for significant wins, might have fostered a more holistic perspective on competition and success.
Representing Australia in an Olympic final was, in his view, a “beautiful thing.” He felt his performance in the final, even with the crash, showcased his riding style and abilities, which helped alleviate some of the sting from the previous days. “I’m feeling a lot better about it [my Olympics] after today,” Lambert shared. “I feel like, even with my crash in the final, I showed a little bit more of my style of riding and my ability. I’m really proud to have been able to do that, and it does take a bit of sting out of the last two days. It’s a beautiful thing to be able to be out here and be representing the country and get so far into an event. Fourth place is — it’s just short of the medals, but it’s fourth place. It’s still very good.”
