Wānaka's Cam Melville Ives struggled to complete his runs in the snowboard halfpipe final, ending in 12th place at Livingo Snow Park.

The first time Olympian qualified in eighth for the final in Italy, but was among the athletes that could not put down clean runs this morning (NZ time).

Melville Ives' first run score of 43, which included a backside double-cork alley-oop and a frontside triple cork 1440, was his best result from his three runs.

The halfpipe is the 19-year-old's only event of the Milano Cortina Games.

Campbell Melville Ives in action during the first run of the halfpipe final. Photo: Reuters

In the halfpipe, riders slide across a 22-foot-tall, U-shaped ramp and perform acrobatic manoeuvres in the air. Judges award points based on amplitude, variety, difficulty and other factors, with a maximum score of 100.

Japanese athletes dominated the early runs in the halfpipe final with a trio of riders scoring in the 90s on their first attempts, before Australia's Scotty James broke into the top positions on his second run.

Yuto Totsuka of Japan eventually won the gold medal, denying James the big prize that has eluded him.

James, trying to finally win gold at his fifth Olympics, took the silver and the bronze went to Totsuka's compatriot Ryusei Yamada.

Totsuka put up a high score of 95 in his second run to lead the field.

Gold medallist Yuto Totsuka of Japan (centre) celebrates on the podium with Australian silver medallist Scotty James and teammate Ryusei Yamada who got bronze. Photo: Reuters

James made his high-flying tricks look effortless at the start of his first run but ran out of room to land and skidded to a stop at the very end. On his second run, he shot up to second place with a 93.50.

The 31-year-old nearly landed a flawless third run but fell on his final trick. He hung his head at the bottom of the pipe.

James, Australia's flag-bearer at Pyeongchang 2018, took bronze at the Games in South Korea and silver in Beijing four years ago.

Defending champion Ayumu Hirano of Japan fell forward in his first run and skidded on his stomach. The 26-year-old returned with an impressive second run and then fell backward on his final attempt. He finished seventh.

Jan Scherrer, of Switzerland, who took bronze in 2022, hit his head in practice before the qualifiers and had to withdraw.

- additional reporting by Reuters