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Australia's Keegan Palmer retains Olympic park skateboard title / Photo: Odd ANDERSEN - POOL/AFP
Australia's Keegan Palmer retains Olympic park skateboard title
Australia's Keegan Palmer retained his Olympic men's park skateboard title on Wednesday, leading from start to finish in Paris.
Palmer laid down a score of 93.11 with his first run and that was good enough to finish ahead of American Tom Schaar on 92.23 and Brazil's Augusto Akio on 91.85.
Palmer won gold in skateboarding's Olympic debut at the pandemic-postponed Tokyo Games three years ago.
He had the gold wrapped up in Paris before his final run, after Schaar failed to catch him with his last attempt.
Palmer and Schaar were the only skaters to complete their first runs, with the Australian taking the lead after a spectacular performance.
Schaar got a hug from rapper Snoop Dogg after his second run but it still wasn't enough to launch him into first place.
Akio jumped into third with his final run and celebrated by showing off his juggling skills to the crowd with a set of clubs.
Schaar had one chance left to leapfrog Palmer but his promising run ended in a fall.
Palmer also fell on his last run, but he had the gold secured by then and he celebrated in the bowl before being joined by some of the other skaters.
M.Johnston--SMC
