12.02 YOLO Flip: White Dethroned, New Champ Keeps Snowboard Spirit Alive

ROSA KHUTOR, Russia, February 12 (R-Sport) – The trick that decided the Sochi Olympic final was pure snowboarding: a YOLO flip – short for “you only live once.”

Shaun White, the man formerly known as the “flying tomato,” may have lost his Olympic crown Tuesday, but the man in his place, Switzerland’s Iouri Podladtchikov, is a worthy heir to the sport’s freewheeling tradition.

The YOLO, a two-flip, four-rotation trick invented by “iPod” and honed by White, was the trick that decided the final at Rosa Khutor Extreme Park. Podladtchikov landed it in style, while White could not quite match him and finished fourth.

“With me and Shaun we want each other to win because we’re trying things differently. It feels kind of unique,” Podladtchikov said.