“Kinda Like a Car Crash”: Years After an Injury That Gave Him 62 Stitches Shaun White Lays Bare the Gut-Wrenching Dangers of Snowboarding

Shaun White is a legend of snowboarding and an inspiration for the young. Besides all the medals and wins, he holds a unique record of being the only snowboarder with the most Olympic medals. But, his success has a price that he has paid.

During his elegant career, he went through many accidents while snowboarding from which he recovered successfully. Among them, one drew a lot of attention and might have ended his Olympic dreams. The retired world champion opens up about it and the gut-wrenching dangers of snowboarding during the promotion of his documentary series ‘The Last Run’.

Shaun White opens up about his injury

In October 2017, Shaun was in New Zealand preparing for the upcoming Pyeongchang 2018 Olympics. During that training, he was preparing for 22 feet superpipe difficult trick — a double cork 1440 in which he should have four rotations of his body before landing. During that exercise, his head smacked at the edge of the pipe due to which he lost control and landed on his head leading to severe face injury and lung bruises.

Speaking on the accident Shaun White said he had been involved in many accidents but that was “Kinda Like a Car Crash“. He further said it happened really quickly, catching him off guard as he soared through the air, expecting a perfect landing. However, he unexpectedly collided with the edge of the skate and touched down on the snow.

The five-time Olympian reflecting on the injury said mistakes can happen during training but this one cost him. He had to have 62 stitches on his face and mouth to close his wounds. It took him months to recover only to return with a bang with winning gold in the 2018 Olympics. The legend had many injuries during his snowboarding journey but was the scariest one which will be remembered.

Shaun White Career Injuries

Shaun White has had his share of injuries during his elegant career which he overcame courageously only to retire due to the effect of one. Early in his career, he suffered from a concussion during training before the 2016 Winter Olympics due to crashing. In 2014 he had a bad accident while performing triple cork. Months before his most tragic accident in 2017 he got injured due to which his doctors advised him to rest. Before Winter Olympics 2022, he had a back injury during work out for which he had to operate. Unfortunately, he couldn’t recover fully from it due to which he decided to retire.

Read More: “Had Multiple Surgeries To Correct This”: On His 36th Birthday, Shaun White Makes a Heartfelt Appeal to His Fans for a Noble Cause

Injuries in snowboarding are sometimes fatal but overcoming it with a warrior mindset makes the difference and Shaun’s career is its evidence.

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