10 Feb 2018

NZ Snowboarder qualifies for Olympic final after unbelievable first run

9:24 pm on 10 February 2018

New Zealand snowboarder Carlos Garcia Knight has reached the final of the Men's Slopestyle at the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics after finishing second in qualifying.

Snowboarder Carlos Garcia Knight will be the first New Zealander in action at the Winter Olympics.

Snowboarder Carlos Garcia Knight was the first New Zealander in action at the Winter Olympics. Photo: Photosport

Knight was the first New Zealander in action at the Winter Olympics.

The 20-year-old had a tremendous first run, posting a score of 80.10, to sit in second after the first qualifying heat.

Knight went all out in his second run, which didn't quite come off, scoring 40.20 in the Snowboard Slopestyle.

But his first up effort was enough to see him hold onto second overall. Marcus Cleveland of Norway finished first after qualification with 83.71.

Each athlete has two runs with their best score counting towards qualification.

The top six progress to tomorrow's final.

Snowboarding at Pyeongchang got off to a rocky start with the qualification for the men's slopestyle event delayed for what officials described as 'technical maintenance'.

The event had been scheduled to start at 2pm New Zealand time but had still not begun by 2:30pm and American Chris Corning, due to be first out the blocks, was left waiting at the top of the slope.

A venue official also suggested the wind conditions, which only registered 3.5 kph before the start of the competition, could be a factor for the delay.

- RNZ / Reuters