BEIJING (NEXSTAR) — Team USA has more than 220 athletes in Beijing for the Winter Olympics, but some say none are as recognizable as the man formerly known as “the flying tomato,” Shaun White.
White is a five-time Olympian with three gold medals, his first claimed when he was just a teenager in 2006. He hopes to take home a fourth gold medal from Beijing.
“I think at a certain point, I realized I was the oldest competitor in the field,” explains White. “I heard it over the loudspeaker at an event. ‘Dropping in, the oldest competitor.’ And I was looking around, ‘who are they talking about?'”
For White, now 35, it has had a challenging journey to Beijing. Since the 2018 games, he has finished on the podium once. Most recently he has dealt with an ankle injury and tested positive for COVID-19.
“I think I’m just operating on a level of just appreciation, just to be back here at this,” says White. “I had this thought in my head the other day when I knew I made the team for the last Olympics, this thought and this overwhelming excitement popped into me and I was like, ‘wow, I get to be an Olympian again. That’s awesome.'”
But will 2022 be Shaun White’s last games? The Olympian has hinted that they might.
“It’s been my life’s work. And I’m so proud that I’m still able to compete on a high level,” says White. “And I’m gonna give it everything I have for these games like I do every time, and see where the chips fall.”
