PYEONGCHANG, South Korea (AP) — For Red Gerard, “big air” has less to do with vaulting himself off the snowboarding jump, more to do with the journey he’s been on since he became an Olympic gold medalist.
The surprise champion has logged some 18,000 airline miles on a post-victory tour that took him from Pyeongchang to Los Angeles to New York, and now, back to South Korea. Ten days after his victory on the slopestyle course, Gerard returned to the snow Wednesday, where he qualified for the final of the big air contest — the newest, highest-flying snowboarding event at the games.