American skateboarder and snowboarder Shaun White, known as the “Flying Tomato,” is a three-time Olympic gold medalist. He has also won multiple Summer and Winter X Games medals.
Born in San Diego in 1986, Shaun White began skateboarding after following his older brother to the nearby YMCA, and took up snowboarding at the age of six. Following his top performances at the 2006 and 2010 Winter Games, and a disappointing fourth-place finish in the halfpipe in 2014, White in 2018 became the first snowboarder to win three Olympic gold medals. The “Flying Tomato” has also claimed several medals at the Winter and Summer X Games.
Bidding to become the first snowboarder to win three Olympic gold medals, White had his hands full against some of the younger competition at the PyeongChang Games. He faced a formidable obstacle in the halfpipe final, when Japan’s Ayumu Hirano landed back-to-back double cork 1440s to surge to the top spot with a 95.25 score. But White responded on his final run by landing his own back-to-back 1440s, earning a score of 97.75 that gave him the win and also marked the 100th overall gold for Team USA in Winter Olympics competition.
White nearly didn’t even get a chance to compete at the Games, following a dangerous crash in October 2017 that landed him in intensive care for five days and resulted in 62 stitches, but he recovered in time to make his bid for history.
Credit : Biography
Picture Credit : Google
