BARDONECCHIA, Italy — Snowboarder Tyler Jewell didn't win Wednesday's parallel giant slalom. But even without a medal, he walked away with something that he'll always cherish draped around his neck.

Jewell, who did advance to the quarterfinals of the event in which Switzerland's Schoch brothers took gold and silver, wore a red bandana to commemorate the life and death of his Boston College roommate.

Wells Crowther, then 24, escaped from his World Trade Center office on September 11, 2001. But, wearing a red bandana over his face, he returned to the 78th floor to save at least 10 lives before perishing in the building's collapse. His story came to light when several survivors mentioned "a man in a red bandana".

"I spoke with his father (this week) and got his permission to wear it as a tribute," said Jewell, a 29-year-old from Sudbury, Mass. "It will be with me always."

Jewell's immediate reaction to his friend's death was to consider enlisting in the Army. Eventually, he decided that devoting himself to seeking an Olympic spot would be a wiser alternative.

"What a cool way to do it," said Jewell, a lacrosse player at BC. "Instead of fighting with guns, I can do it in sports."

The parallel giant slalom — or PGS — is an event that's not yet a regular part of American snowboarding. That's why a U.S. team that had won three gold and three silvers here never really had much of a chance Wednesday.

Simon and Philipp Schoch entered the event as the two top-ranked sliders, respectively, on this year's World Cup circuit. But Philipp, at 26 a year younger, won his second consecutive gold medal, edging out Simon in the final match race.

"We both knew that we'd have many memories of this," said Phillip. "We said to each other, `Let's enjoy it and may the better one win,' Today, it was me. Sorry, Simon."

The bronze medal went to Austria's Siegfried Grabner.

"For me, the bronze medal shines just like the gold medal," Grabner said. "It's no disgrace being third behind these two guys."

In the championship races with his brother, Simon almost wiped out early. That put him nearly a full second (.88) ahead of his brother, a huge margin in this sport.

The Schochs are the first brothers to win gold and silver in an event since American skiers Phil and Steve Mahre did it in the 1984 slalom at Sarajevo.

The event pits racers against each other for two trips down the 24-flag course in qualifying. Jewell, ranked 118th in this year's World Cup standings, advanced with the ninth best aggregate time.

Then the final 16 paired off for two more races — one down each of the two courses. In the second, the first-run winner gets a head start equal to his advantage. It works the same way as the field is narrowed to eight, four and two.

Jewell had beaten Slovenia's Dejan Kosir by .29 of a second after their first run. But he was eliminated when Kosir, despite the staggered start, beat him by .01 of a second in the second.

A gate he clipped while gambling late probably sunk his longshot chances.

"That cost me," he said, "but I can look myself in the mirror. I took a chance and it either was going to pay off or not. It was close."

The loss ended a fascinating odyssey for Jewell. While training in Colorado, he had lived in his car, sold sausages at a carnival and, later, moved into a tent.

"I got to like it," he said of the tent. "I never watched TV. I just watched the stars. I'd go to bed early and wake up early. Then I'd train, go to the public library and hang out. I'd eat my meals at the hospital. It was like $2.50 a meal and really good food."

A former skier who took up the sport by borrowing his older brother's board whenever his sibling ate lunch, Jewell took offense to being labeled a "snowboard bum".

"I'm not a snowboard bum," he said. "I'm more like a guy following his destiny. Jewell said he will shoot for a spot in the 2010 Olympics as well.

"It's been a very difficult road and that's what makes it all so special. If everything happened so easy, this would just be another day. ... It's an honor just to be here."