Freestyle skiers had tackled the venue yesterday as part of Pyeongchang 2018 test event programme, but the snowboarders would have their turn today.

White had been enthused by the quality of the quality of the halfpipe earlier this week, after snowboarders had been able to have training days at the park.

“It is great, the flat bottom is really smooth and the walls are really big” said the American snowboarder, winning of halfpipe gold medals at the Turin 2006 and Vancouver 2010 Olympics.

“It just feels comfortable.

“You can go as fast as you want or you can adjust to how you are feeling.

“It is probably one of the best pipes of the season.”

The halfpipe certainly will have White approval after qualifying, with the American topping the men’s standings with a first run score of 93.25.

His compatriot Chase Josey and China’s Zhang Yiwei completed the top three, scoring 89.50 and 89.00 to secure spots among the 10 qualifiers to the final.

Kelly Clark made sure an American would also finish top of the women’s standings, as she scored 92.75 to progress as the top qualifier.

Liu Jiayu and Cai Xuetong of China finished in second and third, with their best runs achieving scores of 88.25 and 87.75 respectively.

The United States’ Chloe Kim, whose parents are from South Korea, would qualify in fourth by scoring 85.25.

The 16-year-old, a double gold medallist at the Lillehammer 2016 Winter Youth Olympics, was followed by the final two qualifiers Maddie Mastro of the US and Japan’s Kurumi Imai.

Freestyle skiing halfpipe finals will take place tomorrow, before the snowboard event concludes on Sunday (February 19).