tanislav Kravchuk of the Ukraine won his first World Cup aerials, and world champion Li Nina of China topped the women's field on Friday.
Kravchuk led after the qualifying round, so he was the last jumper in the finals at Deer Valley. He tried not to pay attention as most of the other jumpers slipped on their landings.
And then he was the first. A tailwind pushed Kravchuk's triple-twisting triple flip out a little far off of the kicker, but he nailed the landing. Once he straightened his knees after the impact, Kravchuk pumped his fist, knowing he had won it.
``When I'm flying, I'm trying to focus to land because it's the hardest part,'' Kravchuk said.
He finished with a combined score of 226.85. Vladimir Lebedev of Russia was second (223.21), followed by Switzerland's Renato Ulrich (222.23).
Li finished with a score of 199.16, beating World Cup leader Jacqui Cooper of Australia (194.87). China's Cheng Shuang (188.75) was third.
Fri February 1, 2008 23:58 EST
PARK CITY, Utah (AP)
From left to right, Australia's Jacqui Cooper, China's Li Nina and Cheng Shuang celebrate on the podium after the ladies World Cup freestyle aerials skiing competition Friday, Feb. 1, 2008, at Deer Valley Resort in Park City, Utah. Li won, Cooper took second and Cheng finished third.
(AP Photo/Douglas C. Pizac)
tanislav Kravchuk of the Ukraine won his first World Cup aerials, and world champion Li Nina of China topped the women's field on Friday.
