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Redding native Olivia Giaccio qualifies for the Olympic Women's Ski Moguls final

This is her Olympics debut and was placed to go first for Team USA

BEIJING, China — The cauldron at the Beijing Olympics opening ceremonies has not yet been lit, but some competitions are underway.

Among those hitting the slopes was moguls skier and Redding-native Olivia Giaccio, who put herself in the mix for some hardware this weekend. The first-time Olympian finished in the top 10 to guarantee her a spot in the final.

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The 21-year-old was the first U.S. skier in the lineup and she told reporters after the qualifying round that she found that somewhat surreal.

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“I saw on the run order today I’d be the one to kick it off for Team USA for the entire Games, so that was pretty cool. It’s really exciting to get to start off the Olympics on a high note, really.”

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Giaccio ended up finishing fourth in the qualifiers with a score of 78.11. Her American teammates Jaelin Kauf and Hannah Soar also finished in the top 10. They will be back in action on Sunday.

The 2022 Winter Olympics officially start on February 4th. 

Daniel Dashefsky is a digital content producer at FOX61 News. He can be reached at ddashefsky@fox61.com.

Information from the Associated Press was included in this report

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