Los Angeles (AFP)
American snowboarder Shaun White, reigning three-time Olympic halfpipe champion, retired from the slopes on Thursday, qualifying for the discipline's final in Aspen, Colorado, where a World Cup stopover takes place.
Legend of the sport, White, who hung up his board three years ago after a third gold medal obtained in Pyeongchang, obtained 2nd place in the qualifications of this competition, less than a year from the Beijing Games ( February 4-20).
He will start in the final on Saturday.
And even if he manages to win, that will not qualify him for the next Games.
But at 34, this is a good opportunity to take on the competition, whose most imposing face was that of the Japanese Yuto Totsuka, the only one to beat him.
These last two seasons, Totsuka has established himself as the big favorite of the next Winter Olympics, winning in particular the last world championships and X Games.
"I was a little nervous," agreed White, after his two runs.
"I know how to do it, but I'm still getting rid of the cobwebs."
If he qualifies for Beijing, he will become the oldest halfpipe rider in history to defend the American colors.
A goal for which he seems well and truly launched, after having recently given up trying to qualify for the Tokyo Games in skateboarding, his other passion.
© 2021 AFP