Austria’s Karl, 40, becomes oldest Winter Olympic gold medalist

Benjamin Karl Wins Parallel Giant Slalom Gold, Becomes First Snowboarder With Four Olympic Medals

Austria’s Benjamin Karl capped his Olympic career in emphatic fashion on Sunday, defending his parallel giant slalom title at the Milano Cortina Games to become the first snowboarder in history to win four Olympic medals. The 40-year-old surged past South Korea’s Kim Sang-kyum in the final stretch at Livigno Snow Park, crossing the finish line 0.19 seconds ahead to secure gold in what he has said will be his final Olympics before retiring.nypost

A Dramatic Final and Record-Breaking Achievement

Karl trailed Kim for a significant portion of the final before accelerating in the closing moments to overtake the South Korean competitor. Bulgaria’s Tervel Zamfirov claimed bronze in a photo finish over Slovenia’s Tim Mastnak, who had won silver at the Beijing 2022 Games.wikipedia

The victory adds to a medal collection that includes silver from Vancouver 2010, bronze from Sochi 2014, and gold from Beijing 2022. At 40 years and 115 days old, Karl also became the oldest individual gold medalist in Winter Olympic history, surpassing Norwegian biathlete Ole Einar Bjørndalen, who was 40 years and 12 days when he won the 10-km sprint at Sochi 2014.nbcolympics

Shirtless Celebration Honors Austrian Legend

After securing victory, Karl celebrated by stripping off his ski gear and lying shirtless in the snow, pumping his arms and shouting in triumph. He described it as an “upper body free session” in homage to his idol, Austrian alpine skiing legend Hermann Maier, who performed a similar celebration during his career.sportsnet

“I thought about Hermann Maier. He once ripped the race suit from his body, and I thought at the start, I’m going to do that now,” Karl explained. “Now I did it, this is the crown of my career”.straitstimes

A Fitting Farewell

Karl announced in November that this season would be his last, and having already collected gold, silver, and bronze at previous Games, he said he felt relaxed heading into Sunday’s competition. “Having won gold, silver and bronze, I was super relaxed today and all the days before. Less pressure than my competitors,” he said.theglobeandmail

The Austrian, who served as his nation’s flagbearer at the opening ceremony on Friday, competed in 215 World Cup events during a 20-year career, recording 58 podium finishes including 27 victories, along with eight World Championship medals.theglobeandmail