Nagano 10 February 1998, XVIII Olympic Winter Games. Women's snowboard giant slalom: Karine RUBY of France 1st, in action. Credit : Getty Images/BOTTERILL ShaunBorn: 4 January 1978
Birthplace: Bonneville (France)
Nationality: France
Sport: Skiing
ATTENDANCE AT THE OLYMPIC GAMES
Nagano 1998
Salt Lake City 2002
Turin 2006
AWARDS
Olympic medals:
Gold: 1
Silver: 1
Other results:
World Championships
Gold: 4 (01, 03)
Silver: 1 (03)
The First Woman Snowboarding Champion
Snowboarding was contested in the Olympics for the first time in 1998. The inaugural women's event, the giant slalom, was delayed one day because of a snowstorm. Twenty-year-old Karine Ruby of Chamonix, France, was the overwhelming favourite, having won seven of the eight pre-Olympic World Cup competitions. She had no trouble living up to expectations.
Ruby's first run time of 1:09.33 led the field by an impressive 1.97 seconds. She protected her lead with a relatively careful second run and won by 1.83 seconds. She also participated in the Salt Lake City Games in 2002 and earned the silver medal in the giant slalom.
