Snowboarder Max Parrot wins Canada's first gold medal at Beijing Olympics

Canada's Max Parrot, of Bromont, Que., celebrates his gold medal performance on the podium following the men's slopestyle final at the Beijing Winter Olympic Games, in Zhangjiakou, China, Monday, Feb. 7, 2022. (Sean Kilpatrick/THE CANADIAN PRESS)

Less than three years after beating cancer, Canadian snowboarder Max Parrot is an Olympic champion.

Parrot, from Bromont, Que., won the men's slopestyle event on Monday to give Canada its first gold medal at the Beijing Games.

"For the past four years, a lot of things have happened with cancer, beating cancer and with COVID, harder to train, travelling, it’s harder than before," Parrot, who jumped up from his silver-medal showing at the 2018 PyeongChang Olympics, told CBC.

"So many challenges for the past year. To be up here with the gold means so much."

Regina's Mark McMorris won bronze, matching his result from the past two Olympics. China's Su Yiming took silver.

“Having longevity and consistency in a young man’s sport is hard. I’m honoured to be playing that role and pushing that envelope," the 28-year-old McMorris told CBC. "2014 bronze, 2018 bronze and now 2022 bronze and competing at a pro level much before the 2014 Olympics. It’s been an incredible run and I appreciate Canada’s support and love. It’s a true honour."

The 27-year-old Parrot diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma in December 2018 and underwent 12 chemotherapy treatments during the span of six months. He made his comeback at the X Games in August 2019, winning gold in the big air.

``I had to stop everything to fight,'' he said. ``I went through hell. It was the first time I ever put my snowboard in the closet. I felt like a lion in a cage.''

Parrot's successful fight was recognized Laureus World Comeback of the Year Award in 2021.

Parrot scored 90.96 on a dominant second run on Monday, then challenged his competitors to catch him.

McMorris had the best score of the third run at 88.53 points, but it wasn't enough to catch his teammate.

``Max beat (expletive) cancer and it's pretty sick to see him do well,'' McMorris said. ``And he didn't come to any slopestyle this year. It's not his strong suit. Big air is, and he just won slopestyle today.''

Yiming, who had the best score in qualifying, took silver with 88.70.

Sebastien Toutant of L'Assomption, Que., was ninth with 54.00.

“This is actually so incredibly special especially with the run I did today," Parrot said. "It’s the biggest run I’ve done in my whole career."

Toutant won gold in the big air event in 2018 and will defend his crown starting Feb. 14.

CBC reported Canada used an old technique -- the lucky loonie -- to provide a boost at the snowboarding venue.

First used at centre ice of the hockey arena for the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics where Canada won the men's and women's events, the loonie was placed in the first rails feature by snowboard coach Chris Witwicki.

Canada now has four medals -- one gold, one silver, two bronze -- at the Beijing Olympics.

-- with files from The Canadian Press and Associated Press

When submitting content, please abide by our  submission guidelines, and avoid posting profanity, personal attacks or harassment. Should you violate our submissions guidelines, we reserve the right to remove your comments and block your account. Sportsnet reserves the right to close a story’s comment section at any time.
We use cookies to improve your experience. Learn More or change your cookie preferences. By continuing to use this site, you agree to the use of cookies.
close