Did experience trump youth for the 'golden oldies' of Beijing 2022?

One particular headline at the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022 brought a smile to the faces of sports fans of a certain age; it went something like this: 'US golden oldies snatch victory in mixed team ski cross with a combined age of 76'.

In a sport that is very much one for the battle-hardened souls – racing from top to bottom of the course, navigating jumps and bumps and with crashes par for the course as four athletes jostle for the lead – it is experience that proves the deciding factor, said Lindsey Jacobellis.

She should know.

At her fourth time of asking, the 36-year-old who has dominated the sport for years but never won an Olympic title, has finally come away with not one but two gold medals – in the individual, and also the mixed team event alongside fellow 'golden oldie' teammate Nick Baumgartner, aged 40.

One part of Jacobellis' experience has been painful, ongoing and high profile. Every Olympic Winter Games since Vancouver 2010, when snowboard cross and indeed Jacobellis, made their debut, the American has featured on the blooper reels.

A favourite for the event, and miles in the lead heading into the final throes of the course, Jacobellis did a bit of showboating, fell, and lost gold, coming in for a silver medal. At Sochi 2014, she crashed in the semi-final and didn't make it to the medal round. At PyeongChang 2018, she just missed out on the podium, coming in fourth after leading for most of the way.

Just 19 in Vancouver, Jacobellis asked afterwards, what teenager hasn't made a silly mistake? Hers was just higher profile than most. Nevertheless, the experience took its toll.

“I did get a lot of backlash and I got hate mail,” she revealed. “And it was hard to deal with as a young athlete.

But over time