In less time than it takes to blink, Breezy Johnson eked out the United States’ first gold medal of these Winter Games with a blistering run down the Cortina d’Ampezzo women’s downhill.
After a leg-burning, ski-chattering mile and a half, Johnson beat Emma Aicher of Germany by 0.04 seconds.
Goggia, the host country’s favorite, won bronze, 0.59 seconds behind Johnson. Jacqueline Wiles, Johnson’s U.S. teammate, missed out on a medal by just over a quarter of a second.
“I wasn’t quite sure it would be enough for the gold, but I thought when I got down it would be enough for a medal,” Johnson said after the race.