The runner-up to Shaun White in the men’s halfpipe thinks he should have been the one atop the podium instead.
Ayumu Hirano, the 19-year-old who nearly bested White with a score of 95.25 on his second run, felt that he had done enough to take the gold medal ahead of White.
“Yes, I do, but the result is the result,” Hirano said via ESPN when asked if he felt he should have won. “And whatever I do, whatever I say, the result cannot be changed.
“There are no big differences between us, what we did. Under this condition, on this pipe it’s very, very difficult to mark higher than [White] did. But perhaps I have some room to improve on the height and the perfectness, perfect landing.”
You have to wonder if Hirano feels the same way as some of White’s other rivals with regard to how the American is treated by judges. While he doesn’t sound like he’s going to raise a stink over this, Hirano definitely doesn’t sound thrilled, but you can understand why he wouldn’t be after coming so close but not being able to pull it off.
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