American snowboarder Shaun White has announced he will retire after the Beijing Games, calling time on an illustrious career.
The 35-year-old has won three halfpipe Olympic gold medals since his Games debut at Torino 2006, adding 13 titles at the Winter X Games to become one of the sport’s most iconic figures.
“It will be my last competition, which is pretty special,” White told the media in Zhangjiakou, China, on Saturday.
“Everything’s got this extra excitement to it. The last time I’ll be doing this [pre-race press conference], the last time sitting with you guys [his USA teammates], the last Opening Ceremony, all these things.
“So it’s pretty, pretty heavy, but I’m enjoying it.”
White took gold in his maiden Games in Italy before adding his second at Vancouver four years later.
A nasty training crash in 2017 — which left White requiring 62 stitches — looked to have endangered the American’s hopes at the PyeongChang Games in 2018, but he made a swift recovery to win his third gold with the “performance of his life” just four months later.
In doing so, he avenged the pain of narrowly missing out on a medal at Sochi four years prior.
As he prepares to compete at his fifth and final Games, White reflected on his journey, an “incredible” Opening Ceremony and his legacy.
“I’ve been giving it my all. There have been ups and downs to get here, but through it all, I’ve gotten stronger and better the whole way and I’m excited to be here,” White said.
“The Opening Ceremony and venue were incredible. In terms of legacy, I’ve done so much in the sport — I hope that my riding speaks to that. I’m always trying to ride and progress and pick up on trends in sport and stay ahead of the competition.”
White is set to begin practice on Sunday, and the American shared his excitement at the prospect of competing at the “beautiful” Genting Snow Park.
Though competitive retirement beckons, White does not believe he will be leaving the sport “anytime soon.”
“I think the beautiful part about snowboarding is there’s still a life to be had than the sport outside of competition with so many names that you know you don’t see in the limelight,” White said.
“All these people within an industry that ride backcountry and pipes. I’m just too excited for the next chapter.”
