Utah Olympic Park • The Samoan ie lavalava — a sarong-like cloth worn for ceremonial purposes — tied around Nathan Crumpton’s waist set him apart from the other sliders bundled up in puffy jackets and snow pants at the awards ceremony for the North America’s Cup skeleton races held here this week. Bright orange and floral, it was eye-catching — but not nearly as much so as his results.
Three times the notes of the little-known American Samoa national anthem chimed over Olympic Park on Tuesday because of Crumpton. The Park City resident tied for first in Monday’s opening race, making him the first American Samoan athlete to win a gold medal in a winter sport.