The Americans have their first medal of these Olympics, and it’s a gold in the downhill for Breezy Johnson, with her compatriot Lindsey Vonn taking a dramatic tumble.

For Breezy Johnson, the road to an Olympic gold medal was similar to the winning downhill run she turned in Sunday: It was full of jarring bumps that nearly knocked her off course, but not off target.

The 21-year-old nicknamed the “Quad God” landed five quadruple jumps and scored 200.03 points for his free skate, atoning for his mediocre short program — at least by his lofty standards — one night e...