After a full day of watching Olympic level snowboard cross at Cypress Mountain and all of its neck-to-neck glory, from sketchy banked turns to disappointing crashes and crowd-crazy photo finishes, at least one thing is certain: there isn’t much predictability in this sport and the podium truly is anyone’s for the taking.

Case in point: Based on his decorated resume and 2006 Olympic title, Seth Wescott was the favoured American heading into the Games. But after placing 17th in the qualifying round, the American fans in the crowd at Cypress were left scratching their collective heads. It seemed he had fallen out of contention. But when you put a final run like his up against another three riders, throw a shot of tension into the mix, and add a mixed bag of variable conditions to the course, you end up with results like his — another gold medal win.

Even at the top of that last run of finals when Wescott was matched up with teammate Nate Holland, Canada’s own Mike Robertson and Tony Ramoin of France, the shifting dynamics of the playing field meant things were still far from being able to call a clear winner. After Holland, who was expected to make a run for the title, spun out near the top of the course, it looked like the younger underdog Mike Robertson had the best chance at taking it. After all, he had been riding exceptionally aggressive all day so it just made sense. Then, in the dying moments near the bottom of the course, Wescott pointed it and, not only closed the gap between himself and Robertson, but managed to sneak out ahead.

“It was a tough one out there today,” he said after finishing his winning race. “The conditions left things a little up in the air, and keeping yourself plugged in to exactly what was happening was key today.”

Plugged in and plugging away. While the fastest shredding qualifier, Australia’s Alex Pullin, had a crowd-gasping wipeout in the first race, and 2009 World Cup champion Markus Schairer, riding with broken ribs, had to bow out after a crash of his own, it was Wescott’s hard work and quick tempo through the four final rounds that helped him. A testament to the many years he’s spent riding on and off snowboard cross courses, Wescott’s veteran status helped him navigate the challenging conditions today to catch up and narrowly beat Mike Robertson and reclaim the victory of his defending title.

So, if past behaviour does predict future outcomes, and Wescott won the gold, it would seem there is certainty to snowboard cross after all. —Dean Seguin

Canadian Robert Fagan leads Germany's David Speiser, fellow teammate Francois Boivin, and Italy's Stefano Pozzolini in Heat 4 of the quarterfinals at Cypress Mountain on Monday. credit: Jamie Squire/Getty Images