Ross Powers won the men’s snowboard halfpipe gold medal at the 2002 Winter Olympics.
Powers won the inaugural Olympic men’s halfpipe title at Salt Lake City in 2002. His victory was part of an American sweep of the podium: Danny Kass won silver and J.J. Thomas won bronze. The result made Powers the first Olympic champion in the men’s halfpipe event.
Powers had already won a world championship title before the Olympics and was known for combining amplitude with difficult rotational tricks. Shaun White won the same Olympic event in 2006 and 2010, which is why the two Americans are sometimes confused in historical summaries. Halfpipe judging evaluates the overall quality of a rider’s run, including height, difficulty, execution, and variety.