Seems weird to not take the gold sitting in front of you.
LRC Update at 6:57 pm ET. A lot of people are offering pure speculation that appears to be fasle. Here is what McEwen said post-competition.
“Talking to Hamish, man, I’ve been around him for a long time now. We’re good buddies, good opponents, and good jumpers when we jump together. He said he wanted to face off, and I was all for it,” explained McEwen rather simply afterwards. “We faced off until the last battle and he came out on top, so salute, congratulations to him.”