Winter Olympics: Emily Arthur rides a Nicki Minaj hit to the final

Sandra and Bill Arthur have commuted the 12-hour trip between Sydney and the Snowy Mountains for more than a decade.

Australian snowboard halfpipe rider Emily Arthur competing in the qualification rounds in PyeongChang yesterday. Picture: Getty Images

Sandra and Bill Arthur have commuted the 12-hour weekend round trip between their South Sydney home and the Snowy Mountains for more than a decade so daughter Emily could indulge her love of snowsports.

First it was slopestyle, getting her first lessons at Perisher at the age of six. But then Emily switched to the halfpipe in her teens.

This week her parents have a shorter trip, travelling from Seoul each day to the Phoenix Snowpark in Bokwang to watch their daughter qualify through to the final of the Olympic halfpipe.

“I am really, really happy,” said Arthur. “I wanted to make the Olympic final. I am stoked. I don’t have too much pressure on me, but I just want to ride like I ride.’’

Arthur, now 18, sings to herself at the top of the mountain to relax. Yesterday it was a Nicki Minaj hit. “If you’re out there Nicki, I am a big fan,’’ Arthur said, making a joke that maybe she would appear in X Factor next year.

Arthur beat some of the sport’s big guns to make the final, including the US superstar Kelly Clarke and four-time Australian Olympian Holly Crawford, who just missed a finals place, coming 13th in qualifying.

Crawford, now 34, said this was her last Olympics and she would look to finish her economics degree, but she had a small dig at the judges in her swansong appearance. “I do feel they judge you against yourself,’’ said Crawford, suggesting the judges take notes of training sessions and almost assess the finals order in a predetermined manner.

“They put everybody, before the competition starts, in a sort of line-up,’’ she said.

Meanwhile, Arthur knows she has to increase the degree of difficulty in her tricks to make any impression in the final. She has a few ready to go, but would wait on the conditions for today’s final before making a final decision.

“I will try to put in some difficulty,’’ she said. “Maybe a nine (two and a half spins). I will play with it in the morning.’’

Qualification for the men’s halfpipe gets underway today and while it is much more than a battle of three, it’s fair to say Australian Scotty James, American Shaun White and Japan’s Ayumu Hirano are the riders to watch.

James has come out swinging during the past two seasons, beating the sport’s $50 million man, White, at the 2017 X Games and the PyeongChang test event. This season he’s been consistent without landing a knockout blow, finishing runner-up to White and his controversial “perfect” ride in Snowmass then to Ayumu at the X Games.

James is the only man to throw down a switch backside double cork 1260 — a trick with three-and-a-half rotations as well as a blind entry and landing. And he feels he hasn’t been rewarded enough for it.

Leading with the chin, James last week calmly but pointedly pulled apart the judging in his sport.

“Not because of getting second place. I am not a sore loser,” James said. “I was just curious (as to why they gave Shaun the perfect 100 score).”

White, meanwhile, has been on more of a charm offensive. The greatest rider the world has ever seen was quick to praise James and Ayumu for their improvement and the difficulties they face with expectations in their own countries. “I remember (James) being around but he wasn’t as passionate, as driven as he is today,” White said.

“Scotty has definitely hit a nice peak last season by winning a bunch of big events and now he’s making his way and we’ll see what happens at the Olympics.”

Additional reporting: AAP