Returning Olympic snowboard hope Tess Coady has just missed the podium in the big air World Cup in China on a day her Australian teammate, promising freeskier Daisy Thomas, suffered an injury that will force her out of the Winter Games.
Ahead of February's showpiece in Milan-Cortina, Coady was making a competition comeback at Secret Garden, the scene of her Beijing bronze medal in 2022 when she finished third in the slopestyle.
The 25-year-old Victorian was rubbed out by shoulder surgery and concussion last year, while she has also overcome a fractured ankle and ACL injury through her career.
