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Leman earns Olympic gold for Canada in men’s skicross

PYEONGCHANG, South Korea (AP) Brady Leman earned Olympic gold for Canada in men’s skicross on Wednesday, beating Marc Bischofberger of Switzerland in a wild final at Phoenix Snow Park.

Leman took the lead early during the last round and then held off Bischofberger in a two-man duel after Canada’s Kevin Drury and Russian athlete Sergey Ridzik collided early on.

Ridzik picked himself up and raced down for bronze well behind the leaders. Russian athletes are still without a gold medal as the Pyeongchang Games enter their final days.

The event calls for side-by-side racing over bumps, jumps and dips down the mountain at speeds over 40 mph. The elimination rounds included a handful of frightening crashes that forced several men to leave the course on a medical sled.

The worst came when 2011 world champion Chris Del Bosco lost control in mid-air late in the run. The right side of the Canadian’s body slammed hard into the snow and he lay motionless for several minutes before emergency personnel carefully placed him on the sled. There was no immediate update on the extent of the 35-year-old Del Bosco’s injuries.

Terence Tchiknavorian of France appeared to injure his right leg after landing a jump awkwardly and Christophe Wahrstoetter of Austria became tangled up in the fence after colliding with Erik Mobaerg of Sweden.

More AP Olympic coverage: https://wintergames.ap.org