Medals update: Sandra Naeslund wins nail-biting Beijing 2022 freestyle skiing ski cross gold

The usual suspects made it to the final of the women's freestyle ski cross event at the Genting Snow Park in Zhangjiakou but the race was anything but usual.

Sweden's Sandra Naeslund finally claimed the gold medal after winning everything else in a stellar career except the Olympic title. She has that now, and at only 25 years old.

Ski to ski with great rival Fanny Smith who was also looking to top her career with the Olympic title, Naeslund managed to keep ahead of the chasing pack, which also included another ski cross stalwart, Canada's Marielle Thompson and the more unexpected finalist of Daniela Maier from Germany.

The top two medallists were clear but after a long wait on completion of the race, Smith, who crossed the line in third place and set to win a second consecutive medal in the women’s ski cross after claiming bronze in 2018, was given a yellow card for side contact and relegated to fourth. Smith shook her head in disbelief while a bemused Mayer bagged bronze, adding Germany to the list of only five nations who have won this event – Canada, Sweden, Switzerland, France and Norway.

Thompson, the Sochi 2014 champion who finished 17th four years ago, claimed a silver medal for the Canadians, the first time the nation has not won the gold medal in the three Olympic Winter Games in which ski cross has been included.

Naeslund has been the out and out best performer of the whole season, leading the World Cup rankings ahead of Smith and Thompson, having won nine out of the ten races so far.

Fourth in PyeongChang 2018 the reigning world champion is the first Swedish athlete to win Olympic gold in ski cross. Anna Holmlund won bronze in 2014, the only other medal won in ski cross for the Swedes.

Naeslund won all four