Snowboarding Sensation Shaun White is Enjoying Life After Leaving the Sport

Five-time Olympian Shaun White recently talked about his retirement, his regrets and his greatest memories of his career. Shaun White

Olympics

Five-time Olympian Shaun White recently talked about his retirement, his regrets and his greatest memories of his career.

Shaun White has expressed that even though he has retired, snowboarding will always be a part of his life and something special.

The 36-year-old shared some insight on his post retirement plans, the best moments of his career and the times that meant the most to him as he received a lifetime achievement award at the US Ski and Snowboard Gold Medal Gala.

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Shaun White Talks Life After Retiring from Snowboarding

White shares with PEOPLE, “When I first started out, the sport wasn’t really much, I’ve been able to watch it grow over my entire career, and grow with the sport. And so to be here in this position recognized as, I guess, one of the greats and influential within the sport, the whole winter sporting world, it’s amazing.”

The three-time gold medalist shares that despite the fact that he was over the sport as a whole, he grew a love for it in the end. He adds, “Everybody’s asking me, ‘Do you miss the idea of competition? Do you miss these things?’ And I keep thinking about it and thinking that I still get to enjoy the sport in so many ways.”

White attended the event with his mom and girlfriend, Nina Dobrev and also shares, “Nights like tonight, I could support the next generation, and I don’t know. I’m excited to walk in these shoes for a bit… Traveling has been amazing, and that lingering pressure is gone.”

With his retirement came new and amazing opportunities. He recently released his snowboarding brand called Whitespace and has been very excited about it.

Shaun White Releases Whitespace

“I’m so happy. I mean, I got chills,” White says of the response to his new brand. “I was getting these DMs through my social pages, and one was this young girl opening her box with her board in it and smiling at her dad, and I was like… God, It just reminded me of when I got my first board, and I’m having that effect on that next generation.”

White also shares with happiness, “I knew I was getting a board sent to me, and I was so excited. I ran home from school every single day and I’m like, “Is the board here?” My mom’s like, “No, it’s not here. It’s not here.” For a week or two every single day, I did that.

And then one day I’m in class and my mom just bursts into the classroom, interrupting everything. She’s like, “I’ve got your board. It’s here.” And I’m like, oh my God. And I’m like excuse me. I lost it. I was so excited. I was so thrilled. And that’s what the sport meant to me. That’s how dear I held it.”

White has incredible memories of being one of the top snowboarders of the world and he also states, “I think from that moment on, I really knew that this is what I wanted to do, this is what I was going to be great at, and I just kind of carried that with me.”

White has overall been happy and shares his feelings overall. He says, “Those ups and downs are what made me the competitor I am. You have to lose. You have to. You have to go through things in life in order to realize how great everything is, and start from somewhere and climb back up to the top.”

He also adds, “If you had a life that you just kept winning and things were great, and then the next chapter of life, things are great and you keep winning… You don’t want to go see a movie where it’s all great, all the way to the end. You need something to happen. You need those dramatic events in your life to grow as a person. So I wouldn’t change a thing.”

White is focusing on the rest of his future along with relationships and keeping happy.

Check out White’s products at Whitespacesnow.com.

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