Snowboarder Jacobellis wins first US gold at the Beijing Games
Jacobellis, who on Wednesday won her country's first gold medal at the Beijing Olympics, never stopped fighting even after being dogged for 16 years by a fumble that came to define her career. In a moment that was instantly televised and endlessly ridiculed, Jacobellis was within meters of winning gold in 2006 - the first time snowboard cross was included in the Games - when she fluffed a trick move and was overtaken at the finish line. The 36-year old, who until Wednesday had failed to reach the podium in the past three Olympics, was adamant that hers was not an easy redemption story but one of perseverance and grit.
