Shaun White

Olympic gold medalist Shaun White has seemingly been able to defy gravity every time he steps on a snowboard. As a native of Southern California, White developed a passion for action sports as a child and turned pro by the time he was in his teens. He dominated the sport of snowboarding, turning in death-defying tricks in halfpipe competitions that often landed him in first place. White amassed multiple gold medals at the Winter X Games and U.S. Open titles. An equally accomplished skateboarder, White became the first athlete to win gold medals in two different sports at the Summer X Games and the Winter X Games in 2003. Yet even with his all his early achievements and commercial success, White still had more tricks up his sleeve when he competed in the 2006 Olympic Winter Games in Turin, Italy. The athlete stunned millions worldwide when he won his first gold medal in the snowboard halfpipe event. He made history at the 2010 Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver, Canada for earning the highest score and for winning back-to-back gold medals in the sport. Following this, in 2011, White won his fourth straight gold medal at the Winter X Games for his Superpipe run. At the 2012 Winter X Games, White became the first person in Winter X history to score a perfect 100 in the men's Snowboard Superpipe, and 2013 marked his sixth straight victoy at Winter X. White did not stop his forward momentum here, either; he went on to compete at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, finishing fourth in the Halfpipe. While training in New Zealand for the 2018 Winter Olympics, White slammed into the edge of a superpipe, necessitating a total of 62 stitches for the resulting facial injuries. This didn't slow White down, however, and he qualified for the U.S. Olympic Team, working throughout the rest of 2017 and into the beginning of 2018 to prepare to join his fellow athletes in PyeongChang, South Korea. Once in PyeongChang, White scored gold for the U.S. with his victory in the men's halfpipe event. White's win was also the 100th gold medal won by the U.S. in Winter Olympic history, making this a truly momentous occasion. With an impressive career spanning sports, entertainment, and endorsement deals, White has proved himself to be a modern day Renaissance man and role model for generations to come.