Five Olympics. Three gold medals. Endless hairstyles. Thanks for the memories, Shaun White!
On Feb. 5, the U.S. athlete and world’s most famous snowboarder officially announced he will be retiring from competitive snowboarding after the current 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics.
“This has all had its amazing glow to every single decision and every single competition because I’ve decided this will be my last Olympics,” White said at the men’s snowboard halfpipe press conference, held in the city of Zhangjiakou. “I’ve given it my all. There have been some ups and downs on the way to get here. But through all that, I feel I’ve got stronger and better.”
The 35-year-old’s final time competing begins in men’s halfpipe Feb. 8 (11:35 p.m. E.T. on NBC and Peacock), with White attempting to become the first athlete in any sport at the Olympic Winter Games to win four gold medals in the same individual event.
So, obviously, we are going to cheer him on by looking back on all of his hairstyles over the years, his sometimes long red locks often raising heights as high as the slopes he’s been shredding. And though he is currently rocking a shorter ‘do—with girlfriend Nina Dobrev serving as his quarantine hairstylist—White seems to be contemplating a return to his old look, asking on Instagram, “What do you think? Should I grow it back out?”
