Winter Olympics: Tiniest mistake costs Jaelin Kauf gold in dual moguls

LIVIGNO, Italy — When the IOC added dual moguls to the Winter Olympic program, this is exactly what they signed up for.

Unpredictable mayhem. Head-to-head drama. Big crashes. Stunning visuals. An event that, in some ways, deconstructs the complexity of a scoring system casual fans might have a hard time following.

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Saturday, they got all of it. And it was spectacular.

“Dual moguls breeds excitement and chaos. Anything can happen,” American Tess Johnson said. “I’m buzzing right now.”

And she didn’t even win a medal.

Two of her teammates did: Jaelin Kauf got her second silver of these Olympics, while 20-year-old Elizabeth Lemley added a bronze medal to the gold she won in women’s moguls a few days ago.

But the path to getting there? Pure, unadulterated madness.

In the more traditional moguls event that has been in the Olympics since 1992, the skiers are scored on one run by judges who consider various elements of the run — the technique with which they navigate the moguls, their speed coming down the hill and the aerial component of jumping off two ramps during the run.

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In dual moguls, the skiers are placed in a single-elimination, March Madness-style bracket and keep racing each other until one winner emerges. While judges’ scoring ultimately determines the winner of each race — you can make up for losing on time with a superior aerial element and better turns — it feels like a human drag race on skis with danger lurking over every move.

“That’s dual moguls for sure,” said Olivia Giaccio, the American who lost to eventual gold medalist Jakara Anthony of Australia in the quarterfinals. “Like, you never know what can happen and it’s often pretty crazy. That’s why it’s so fun to watch as a spectator.”

By the time they got to the semifinals, things got wild. Facing France’s Perrine Laffont, Kauf advanced on a technicality as both skiers crashed. But Laffont, who got stuck trying to keep her balance after landing her first trick, had to ski the wrong way around a gate, which essentially resulted in a disqualification for failing to stay on course.

Kauf saw Laffont had spun out but almost immediately tripped over a mogul herself. Suddenly, they were both trying to pick themselves up off the snow and keep going. Nobody was quite sure what happened until they both got to the bottom of the hill.

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“I just didn’t want to let off,” Kauf said. “And next thing you know, [things] exploded, and had to just pick myself up and try to get back to it as soon as possible.”

Moments later in Lemley’s semifinal against Anthony, she lost her ski landing on the second jump and skidded down the hill on her stomach, allowing Anthony to cruise across the finish line.

That pitted Lemley against Laffont for the bronze.

“I came in super short and under-rotated my elbow, but I was able to go up and ski another run so I’m super happy,” Lemley said. “If there was [pain], I was just blocking it out. I’ll deal with that later. It’s time to win a medal.”

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In that race, Laffont crossed the finish line .99 seconds ahead of Lemley. But Lemley, knowing she was behind, attempted a more complex trick off the second ramp. Laffont playing it safe ultimately cost her. When the judges announced that Lemley had won the bronze, 18-17, her mouth was agape — and Laffont was furious.

“We’re doing a sport where skiing counts for 60% of the score. It’s hard to do a judged sport in moments like this,” she said. “Especially when I gave it my all in the skiing [component], when I had the time points. It’s hard to understand.”

Lemley admitted to being surprised by the score.

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“I definitely had a few mistakes,” she said. “It was not a perfect run. I was definitely a little frazzled at the top but I trust my skiing and trust my air.”

Then it was Kauf’s turn.

Though the run began with a lot of promise, a tiny bobble midway down the course caused her left ski to slip out for a split second. That ultimately allowed the chasing Anthony to catch up, win on time and on style. The final score was 20-15.

“Every competitor out here is going for gold,” Kauf said.” But to walk away with the first-ever silver medal from dual moguls at the Olympics is pretty special. And ‘three-time Olympic medallist’ isn’t bad either.”

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In the end, the question we should all be asking is why dual moguls wasn’t added to the Olympics sooner.

“It makes the sport so much more accessible to the everyday person who doesn’t fully understand every [element] of moguls skiing,” Canadian skier Jessica Linton said. “It’s a little easier to watch, it’s easier to see, ‘Okay, that one’s faster, this one’s cleaner.’ I’m really hoping it’s gonna make moguls skiing a lot more popular because it’s an awesome sport and duals is crazy. Anything can happen.”

Time will tell whether it sparks more overall interest in moguls skiers, which tend to not get as much attention as their counterparts in other disciplines. But after the show they put on Saturday, there should be no doubt that it’s in the Olympics to stay.”