Snowboard-Tricks and speed on show in Livigno as Kim goes for third gold

LIVIGNO, Italy, Feb 3 : American Chloe Kim will aim for a third straight halfpipe gold medal as the Olympic snowboarding competitions begin on Thursday, promising breathtaking tricks and intense racing in the northern Italian town of Livigno.

Snowboarders at the Milano Cortina Games will compete in 11 medal events across the freestyle disciplines of halfpipe, slopestyle and big air followed by the racing contests of snowboard cross and parallel giant slalom.

Earlier concerns about snow conditions on the slopes have dissipated. Livigno, which stands at an elevation of more than 1,800 metres in the Alps, was white-capped on Tuesday as workers finished preparations ahead of races.

"We finally have a lot of snow and overall the venues are looking good," Uwe Beier, director for snowboard alpine and snowboard cross for the International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS), told Reuters. 

Freestyle competition will centre on high-flying tricks in the halfpipe and big air, with established performers expected to steal the show next to new talent, all on Livigno's revamped slopes. 

Kim, 25, could become the first snowboarder to win three consecutive gold medals in the women's halfpipe, which features riders sliding across a 22-foot-tall, U-shaped ramp and performing acrobatic tricks in the air. 

She was a heavy favourite before a recent shoulder injury disrupted her training.

Two other women also have the chance to earn their third straight gold medals, big air Austrian Anna Gasser and dual-discipline Olympic champion Ester Ledecka in the parallel giant slalom.

New Zealand's Zoi Sadowski‑Synnott, the first woman to land a triple cork in a slopestyle contest, will aim for her second gold after her triumph in Beijing.

On the men's side,