Snowboarding: Japan's Yuto Totsuka wins maiden halfpipe world championship
Japan's Yuto Totsuka won his maiden halfpipe world title Saturday following an incredible final run at the FIS Snowboard and Freestyle Ski World Championships in Aspen.
With the victory, the 19-year-old denied Australia's Scotty James a record fourth straight world title and underlined his status as the man to beat in the run-up to the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics.
Japan's Yuto Totsuka competes in the men's snowboard halfpipe final at the FIS Snowboard and Freestyle Ski World Championships in Aspen on March 13, 2021. (Getty/Kyodo)
Totsuka, who finished runner-up to rival James at the previous world championships, scored 96.25 to finish 5.75 points ahead of the Australian. Switzerland's Jan Scherrer was third, 9.25 points behind Totsuka.