Shaun White Reveals How He Used His Iconic “Flying Tomato” Hair for a Noble Cause

It was more than Shaun White’s flowing red hair that made his runs down the slope iconic. “The Flying Tomato” wasn’t all hair, but the incredible skill, dedication to the sport, and, of course, the signature Double McTwist 1260.

But when he got his fiery red locks cut off, it devastated the world. In fact, that was perhaps the most disappointing news in the world of snowboarding.

Shaun White donated his hair

Just a couple of days ago, the 15 times X Games winner appeared on Kevin Hart’s YouTube segment, talking about all things Shaun White. When questioned about his haircut, White revealed that his hair didn’t end up in a trash can.

“I ended up donating it,” he claimed. “You can donate it to charities that make wigs for…” Unfortunately, he was interrupted before he could finish that sentence, but let us fill in the blanks for you. White donated his hair to Locks Of Love, a 501 nonprofit providing hair prosthetics for children that lost their hair because of medical conditions.

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Later in the interview, when his ginger hair is compared to a staff’s similarly colored beard, White reiterates, “That was for the children.” And while his original intention behind losing his locks may not have been charity, he certainly pulled through and made the most out of the situation.

Why did White cut his iconic hair?

In the same interview, Shaun White revealed he met Carrot Top in Las Vegas. The American actor and comedian also sports brilliant red, long and curly hair much like White’s hairdo at the time. And with their shared experience of sporting the hairstyle, the Olympic champion admitted to wanting to trim it down.

“He kind of gave me the look like, ‘Do it now before it’s too late.’ He’s like, ‘I’m stuck like this but there’s still time for you,’” White narrated. About 10 months after the haircut, White even documented meeting Carrot Top on Twitter, writing, “whelp…@RealCarrotTop…this happened…#iHeartRadio.”

Incredible crossover aside, White has done a lot towards charitable efforts for children. This includes his collaborations with the Boys and Girls Club of America and the St. Jude Children’s Hospital. The snowboarder himself was born with a rare heart condition comprising four congenital heart defects.

Doctors also call his condition as Tetralogy of Fallot (ToF), which affects nearly 5 in every 10,000 children. He revealed on the Jimmy Kimmel show that he underwent three operations to repair his heart.

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