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ZHANGJIAKOU, CHINA – FEBRUARY 09: Shaun White of Team United States performs a trick on a practice run ahead of the Men’s Snowboard Halfpipe Qualification on Day 5 of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games at Genting Snow Park on February 09, 2022 in Zhangjiakou, China. (Photo by Matthias Hangst/Getty Images)
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ZHANGJIAKOU, CHINA – FEBRUARY 09: Shaun White of Team United States performs a trick on a practice run ahead of the Men’s Snowboard Halfpipe Qualification on Day 5 of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games at Genting Snow Park on February 09, 2022 in Zhangjiakou, China. (Photo by Matthias Hangst/Getty Images)
Shaun White, the three-time Olympic gold medalist is now leading a retired life. After the Beijing Winter Olympics 2022, White decided to quit snowboarding for good.
Despite failing to medal in his last Winter Olympics, White is proud of his Olympic achievements over the years. After all, he has the most number of Olympic gold medals for any snowboarder in history.
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In a recent interview, White revealed how his journey to greatness began at just seven years old with his first sponsorship.
How did a seven-year-old Shaun White land a sponsor?
In an interview with Kate Snow for NBC, Shaun White talked about his career, his plans for the future, and even a potential marriage. In fact, he shared how his snowboarding career began in the first place.
“It was the support of my family, honestly,” White expressed. “I started skiing around four and then (I) grabbed a board at five (years of age)”.
Our series "The Drink with Kate Snow" highlights how people got where they are.
So how did Shaun White become a snowboarding legend, with a sponsorship before he was 10 years old?
Watch the full interview with @TVKateSnow: https://t.co/2owvksb5YC pic.twitter.com/U9yFhcjLXp
— NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt (@NBCNightlyNews) March 13, 2022
Then, Shaun revealed that “by six or seven, (he) was sponsored”. Then, Kate Snow asked Shaun the question anyone in the world would, upon hearing that- how did a seven-year-old get sponsored?
“That’s where the family comes in,” White explained. Shaun and his family realized that nobody made snowboards for kids as young as six or seven.
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“I rode ski boots on makeshift bindings on a board for the longest time,” White stated. This was because “they just didn’t have equipment” for a toddler.
Shaun White’s mother helped him secure sponsorship as a toddler
Thus, it was Shaun’s mother who came to the rescue in that situation. “My mom called Burton snowboards,” White shared.
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ZHANGJIAKOU, CHINA – FEBRUARY 09: Shaun White of Team United States competes during the Men’s Snowboard Halfpipe Qualification on Day 5 of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games at Genting Snow Park on February 9, 2022 in Zhangjiakou, Hebei Province of China. (Photo by Wei Zheng/CHINASPORTS/VCG via Getty Images)
Thus, Shaun White’s mother Cathy White was responsible for getting him a snowboard for his size and age made especially for him by Burton Snowboards.
“I don’t think it was because I was great or anything,” White said. “It’s just (that) they needed kids to test the products and I fit the bill,” he continued.
911: Attention all cars 🚓. Caller reports "Flying Tomato". Wearing white and GOLD on a Burton board – stealing the show @USOlympic village in #pyeongchangOlympics2018
"Disregard, it's just @shaunwhite doin his THANG!" pic.twitter.com/gk4eEdyoNo— Denver Police Dept. (@DenverPolice) February 14, 2018
“I got a board,” White reminisced, “and it meant the world to me”. Eventually, Burton asked White to try out in competitions since he already had products for himself.
Consequently, he entered a regional snowboarding competition and won, at just six years old. Undoubtedly, Shaun White was always destined for greatness, and Burton Snowboards and his mother recognized that early on.
Now, Shaun has launched his own snowboarding brand Whitespace.
WATCH THIS STORY: From His Music Festival Company to Heart Disease: Five Unknown Facts About Shaun White
