U.S. freestyle skier Chris Lillis came up clutch in the finals of the inaugural mixed team aerials event in the 2022 Winter Olympics to win the United States the gold medal, though he fell short of the podium in the individual event on Wednesday.
Lillis’ final run scored a 103.00 after an unfortunate fall, placing him in sixth, while Schoenefeld’s final run scored a 106.50 and earned him fifth place.
China’s Qi Guangpu clinched gold with a 129.00, Ukraine’s Oleksandr Abramenko, the 2018 defending gold medalist, clinched silver with a 116.50 and Ilya Burov, the 2018 defending bronze medalist, clinched another bronze with a 114.93.
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Despite Wednesday's disappointment, Beijing marked an entrancing Olympic debut for the 23-year-old Lillis, a New York native. His older brother Jon competed in the same event four years ago and his younger brother, Mikey, may have been on the same path as well before he suddenly died in his sleep in 2017. He was just 17.
A cause of death for Mikey remains unclear years later. Lillis is remembering him at the Beijing Games both on and off the slopes. See some of his highlights below.
Skiers Chris and John Lillis on the bonds of brotherhood
Four years after his brother, John, competed in PyeongChang, aerials skier Chris Lillis is looking for an individual medal in Beijing. And like Jon, Chris will be carrying the memory of their youngest brother.
Full replay - Men's aerials finals in freestyle skiing
See a full replay of the men's individual aerials finals in freestyle skiing.
USA wins mixed team aerials on Lillis' quin-twisting triple
Chris Lillis' massive quintuple-twisting triple in Final 2 helped lead him and teammates Ashley Caldwell and Justin Schoenefeld to a stunning victory over China for mixed team aerials gold in the event's Olympic debut.
2021 Worlds: USA's Chris Lillis lands on aerials podium
American Chris Lillis honored Jeret "Speedy" Peterson on his silver medal-winning jump in the men's aerials finals at the 2021 World Championships in Almaty, Kazakhstan, earning a 133.50 behind Maxim Burov's 135.00.
