Wise overcomes broken bindings to retain halfpipe gold

David Wise of the United States overcame broken bindings and produced a scintillating final run to retain his ski halfpipe Olympic title on Thursday.

After two falls, Wise got it right at the third time of asking, scoring 97.20 in the final round to push compatriot Alex Ferreira (96.40) into second place.

Sixteen-year-old New Zealander Nico Porteous claimed the bronze medal with a score of 94.80.

Ferreira, who scored more than 90 points in all three runs, led going into the final round but Wise, who had failed to go clean on his first two attempts, delivered four double corks to match the gold he won when the event made its debut in Sochi.

With six of the top 10 skiers in the World Cup rankings hailing from the United States, many had predicted an All-American podium sweep.

However, Porteous had other ideas as he produced a stunning second run that belied his age to secure New Zealand's second bronze medal of the day.

Fellow 16-year-old Zoi Sadowski-Synnott won New Zealand's first Winter Olympics medal since 1992 earlier on Thursday morning in the women's snowboard big air.

Speaking to reporters after the final, Wise blamed faulty bindings for the two uncharacteristic falls...