The Cooma born and raised snowboarder finished second behind American Kaitlyn Farrington (91.75), and ahead of Kelly Clark (90.75), also of the USA.
Bright, who scored a disappointing 58.25 in her first run of the halfpipe, rallied all she could muster on her second attempt, scoring a huge 91.50 which put her 0.25 points behind Farrington, a tiny margin that robbed the Aussie of back-to-back Olympic gold.
Bright, who took gold the same event in the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics, said while the contest in Sochi provided a close finish that made for some exciting spectating, she was definitely feeling the pressure.
“Tonight was really difficult. Perhaps like one of the hardest contests I have done in a while,” she said. “I’m so happy it is over and I am so happy I put a run down. I am grateful to be here.”
If not for Bright it would have been an all-American trifecta finish, with another former Olympic champion, Hannah Teter, finishing in fourth place.
Torah said that while the finals pressure mounted, her mind was a million miles away thinking of her family watching in Australia.
“I was actually thinking about my brother and everybody back home,” she said. “I am like, ‘Why did I do that to them again? Leave it down to the last run. Why do I do it to myself?’ “
Winning Olympic medals has been a lifelong dream for Bright. She was on skis at the age of two, snowboarding at 11, and had turned professional by the time she was 14.
The victory ties Bright with Dale Begg-Smith as Australia’s most successful Winter Olympian. Begg-Smith won the gold medal for Australia in the men’s moguls event at the 2006 Winter Olympics and silver at the 2010 Winter Olympics.
