Although he finished on the podium, he is still the only snowboarder to have won three Olympic gold medals.
He was proud to have won a fourth gold medal despite his efforts to shred halfpipes.
“A lot emotions are hitting me right now — cheering from the crowd and some kind words by my fellow competitors at bottom. After his last run at the Beijing Games, White stated that he was so happy. Thank you, snowboarding. It’s been my love all my life.
This was White’s fifth Winter Olympics. They have always ended in one way or the other: a gold medal, or a fourth place finish. This is the nature of White’s all-or-nothing sports, where athletes try to outdo themselves and land the latest gravity-defying trick.
White has been able, since his Olympic debut in Turin Olympics 2006, to pull on extra gear to make a run that is unstoppable. White has seen the sport grow with him literally. The Olympic halfpipe walls in 2006 were 18ft high, but they were raised to 22ft in 2008. That’s almost twice the height of the Nagano halfpipe’s debut in 1998.
White is an innovator who has performed tricks in competition once thought impossible. The Double McTwist 1260 was created by White. It “combines three-and a half twists with two flips,” the Olympics explains. White began with huge foam pits because of the danger.
It was a third trick that won the Beijing Games. White has never seen it before. The triple cork 1440. Ayumu Hirano from Japan landed the trick multiple times while he was on his way up to the top. The trick consists of three diagonal flips. But that undersells it a bit: the triple cork “entails spinning four full rotations while simultaneously inverting three times,” as NBC Sports
White’s triple cork is what got away. In 2013, White was trying the trick, and was then in a terrible crash that sent him to the hospital. White put the trick on hold. White was also subject to sexual harassment allegations in the #MeToo movement. White initially denied that he would discuss “gossip” when questioned about the 2018 allegations. White later apologized for his remark and said that he regrets his past actions.
White, who was finishing his last run at the Olympics, took in the scene and spoke to journalists about the meaning of it all Friday.
He said , “It’s done, and I’m so relieved,”. White acknowledged his difficulties in achieving another jaw-dropping run but added that he did everything he could to be proud of fourth.
He said, “Obviously, I would love to have third,” and then added, “And then, if I would’ve had third, would I have loved second?” As a competitor, I want more. But I’m proud. I am leaving behind a life and career in this sport, as well as a legacy.
