Olympian Shaun White Describes ‘Honor’ of Representing United States
By Movieguide® Contributor
Three-time Olympic snowboarding gold medalist Shaun White is reflecting on what it meant for him to represent the United States in five Olympic games.
“It was amazing. I really had the honor to do that five times, which is wild,” he told Fox News Digital.
At first, though, he didn’t truly understand what an honor it was.
“To be honest, I didn’t really get it the first time I went to the Olympics,” he explained. “I was like, cool, I’m here, I’m trying to win this, you know? Me, me, me, which [is] what the sport is. It’s like my tricks, my practice hours, my competition, my runs, my whatever, my sponsors, all these things, and then you get home and you realize, after I won the Olympics, people were like, ‘You did it. You made America proud, you made us proud.’ And I didn’t realize that until afterward.”
“So, I would say, by my second, third, fourth, fifth Olympics, I was really like, ‘OK, we’re here, like, it’s Team USA.’ I’m cheering for sports that I would never have…You’re really a part of a team when snowboarding is such an individual sport. Now we’re part of this team. I always loved the Olympics for that. I was honored to do that,” he added.
When White went on the USO tour, he gained an even deeper appreciation for representing the US.
“And it really actually hit home. I went on a USO tour because our troops overseas, they don’t get to come home during the holidays…And so, we’re over there, and just to see people’s faces when I came through was really a fulfilling and humbling experience,” he said.
White announced his retirement after the 2022 Olympics.
“It’s been this crazy ride and I’ve loved every bit of it,” he said at the time. “Sad to hang up the competitive side of my life, but I’m so excited for the rest of it.”
“His achievements on the snowboarding slopes solidified his status as one of the greatest athletes in the sport’s history, and his commitment to representing Team USA with pride and honor left a lasting impact on fans and fellow athletes alike,” West Observer wrote.
“This is where I was born. This is where I learned everything I know,” he said of the US. “And to be honest, making the Olympic team, it’s like being a part of history.”
“And I think that’s such a beautiful thing because there’s so many things that go on in the world that separate us,” White concluded. “And the Olympics is one thing that’s always like, ‘Hey, we’re going to come together under the umbrella of sports and celebrate athleticism.’ And so that was always a cool thing that I was proud of and it made me, I think, more proud of where I am from afterward.”
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