“The decision became less about going for skate and more about, am I willing to walk away from snow? It just was going in that direction, and I didn’t feel comfortable with it, and I can’t wholeheartedly choose this path with what I’ve got going on snow.”
The Associated Press reports Shaun White is pulling out of qualifying events to compete for the US at skateboarding’s Olympic debut later this year in Tokyo. Shaun is a five-time X Games skateboard medalist but took a long break to focus on snowboarding until his return to the sport in 2018 with the Olympics in mind.
Shaun decided to give his Olympic skateboarding aspirations to concentrate his efforts on his snowboard career. The 33 year old won’t yet say he will be shooting for the US team at the 2022 Olympic winter games in Beijing but the implications are obvious:
“It doesn’t mean I’m committed to going to China, but it doesn’t feel too far-fetched for me. I still feel great and that’s where it got left for me. I’m dipping back into snow, and doing what feels right.”
Would have loved to see Shaun repping the US in Japan by boosting out of whatever course they put together (he goes bigger than anyone on a skateboard, just like on snow) but understand and respect his decision. Best of luck in all pursuits.
Here’s a quick reminder of how nasty Shaun is on a skateboard:
