Australian snowboarding icon Scotty James has been away from the headlines for the last few months. The defending X Games SuperPipe champion was busy spending time with his wife and newborn son, Leo, whom the pair welcomed in October last year. However, the two-time Olympic medalist is back to making as he closed in on Shaun White’s record.

James returned to Buttermilk Mountain, Aspen, on Thursday, January 23, to defend his SuperPipe crown. Scotty James maintained his dominance in his first major competition since becoming a dad, winning his fourth consecutive SuperPipe gold at the 2025 edition. James equaled White’s three-peat streak in 2024 but is now closing in on the American’s record of six in a row.

“I’m feeling unbelievable. A four-peat — I couldn’t have dreamt of this, so I’m absolutely stoked,” James told the media after nearing Shaun White’s record. However, the Australian’s opponents, Yuto Totsuka and Olympic gold medalist Ayumu Hirano didn’t make things easy. However, the Warrandyte native held off the elite challengers to pull off the four-peat at Aspen.

The Olympian entered the finals at the top of the leaderboard, scoring 93.00. However, the defending champion saved the best for the finals, scoring 96.33 on the SuperPipe, beating second-placed Yuto Totsuka by almost three points. Totsuka ended the night with a 93.66, while the reigning Olympic champion Ayumu Hirano finished in third with 92.33.

The snowboarder expressed his gratitude on social media. Wrote James: “It was all a dream. To my family, my team, and all my supporters, your belief in me has made all of this possible,” in the caption. However, James also explained that he needed to do something special to match Shaun White‘s streak.

Scotty James took a huge risk to stay on Shaun White’s path

While the former world champion won SuperPipe gold by quite a large margin, it wasn’t because the competition couldn’t match his skill. In fact, it was the opposite, and James knew he had to take a risk to move beyond Hirano and Totsuka’s reach. So the snowboarder pulled out all the stops, including the notoriously difficult Cab Triple Cork 1440.

“The triple cork is the one. It’s the trick I feel you have to have in the mix to have any intention of making any damage on the podium,” confessed the Olympian. However, Scotty James also admitted that it was a risky move. “I just said, ‘You know what, either crash or win,” explained the Australian. Thankfully, taking a risk to match Shaun White was well worth the effort.

“We got it done,” added the snowboarding champion, who had last competed alongside Shaun White in the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics. However, throughout the competition, Scotty James’ son Leo didn’t stray from his thoughts. Although Leo is too young to “care” about his dad’s X Games achievements, or snowboarding, the Australian explained that he loves being a dad just as much as winning at snowboarding.