Sochi 2014: Jenny Jones wins historic British bronze
Jenny Jones wins Great Britain’s first-ever Winter Olympic medal on the snow with bronze in the women’s snowboard slopestyle.
Above: How Jenny Jones prepared for Winter Olympic bronze.
Jones’s bronze on the second day of the competition was Britain’s earliest medal in the Winter Olympics.
The 33-year-old from Bristol was the oldest entrant in the final, but she showed her experience with her best run of the week on her last attempt.
Jones’s score of 87.25 briefly put her top of the standings and though she was overtaken by Finland’s Enni Rukajarvi (92.50), who took silver, and gold medallist Jamie Anderson (95.25), her third-place finish was seen as a wonderful achievement.
‘As clean as a whistle’
An emotional Jones was hugged by her mother on live television at the bottom of the course. Her parents had watched her display of grinding, jumping and spinning that put her on the podium.
She said her first run was “as clean as a whistle” and her second was the best run she could have done.
Read more: how to win at snowboard slopestyle
“I can’t believe it,” she told the BBC.
“I was just waiting because I knew I was going to drop down and down (the leaderboard) but I didn’t know how far.
“I’m just so happy right now.”
‘Historic first’
Liz Nicholl, UK Sport Chief Executive, said: “Jenny winning a historic first British Olympic medal on snow, in the new slopestyle snowboarding discipline, will create a huge sense of excitement and momentum within the team.
Read more: Jenny Jones - Team GB's slopestyle contender
“UK Sport has invested over £14m of National Lottery and Government funding into athletes representing Great Britain at the Sochi Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, and set a target of winning at least three Olympic medals, so Jenny has got the team off to a sensational start.”
Despite being held back in recent years by a series of injuries, she returned to form when she made the podium in the first World Cup event of the Olympic season in New Zealand.
Jones is known for her lively sense of humour, and when not pursuing her sport, spends as much time as she can with her family in Bristol.