BEIJING, China — U.S. snowboarding star Shaun White has qualified for the men’s halfpipe final, putting him in the running for one last Olympic medal before retirement.
The U.S. will be well represented at the final, with White joined by Taylor Gold and Chase Josey. White qualified fourth, with Gold in seventh and Josey in the twelfth — and final — spot.
White fell on his signature trick on his first run — the Double McTwist 1260 — and was mired in 19th place. Each rider gets two tries and only their best score counts, so White returned to the top of the pipe and nailed the same run he’d tried before.
He stomped every landing and at the bottom tore off his goggles and let out a “Yeahhhh.”
“I’m feeling incredible,” White told an NBC Olympics commentator. “You’ve got to fight for it to get into the final, which I did.”
He promised to give the final “all (he’s) got”.
Earlier in the Games, the three-time gold medalist made it clear that not only will the Beijing Games be his last Olympics, they’ll mark his final contest, too.
“In my mind, I’ve decided this will be my last competition,” White said in an emotional news conference Saturday.
The 35-year-old said he’s toggling between trying to enjoy every moment of the last big contest week of his life and knowing there is work to do.
“I’m sort of pinching myself, with how lucky I am to still be here at this age,” he said.