Shaun White facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

Shaun White is a famous American athlete who used to be a professional snowboarder and skateboarder. He was born on September 3, 1986. Shaun has competed in the Olympics five times and won three gold medals in snowboarding's halfpipe event. He holds records for the most gold medals in both the X Games and the Olympics for a snowboarder. He has also won many ESPY Awards, which celebrate top athletes.

Quick facts for kids
Shaun White

White in 2018

Personal information

Full name

Shaun Roger White

Born

September 3, 1986 (age 38)
San Diego, California, U.S.

Height

5 ft 8 in

Weight

154 lb

Sport

Country

United States

Sport

Snowboarding, skateboarding

Medal record

Men's snowboarding

Representing the United States
Olympic Games
Gold	2006 Torino	Halfpipe
Gold	2010 Vancouver	Halfpipe
Gold	2018 Pyeongchang	Halfpipe
Winter X Games
Gold	2003 Aspen	Superpipe
Gold	2003 Aspen	Slopestyle
Gold	2004 Aspen	Slopestyle
Gold	2005 Aspen	Slopestyle
Gold	2006 Aspen	Superpipe
Gold	2006 Aspen	Slopestyle
Gold	2008 Aspen	Superpipe
Gold	2009 Aspen	Superpipe
Gold	2009 Aspen	Slopestyle
Gold	2010 Aspen	Superpipe
Gold	2011 Aspen	Superpipe
Gold	2012 Aspen	Superpipe
Gold	2013 Aspen	Superpipe
Silver	2002 Aspen	Superpipe
Silver	2002 Aspen	Slopestyle
Silver	2007 Aspen	Superpipe
Bronze	2007 Aspen	Slopestyle
Bronze	2008 Aspen	Slopestyle
Men's skateboarding
X Games
Gold	2007 Los Angeles	Vert
Gold	2011 Los Angeles	Vert
Silver	2005 Los Angeles	Vert
Silver	2010 Los Angeles	Vert
Bronze	2008 Los Angeles	Vert

Early Life and Beginnings

Shaun White was born in San Diego, California. He is the youngest of four children. When he was a baby, he had two heart operations before he was one year old. This was because he was born with a heart condition called Tetralogy of Fallot.

Shaun spent his early years snowboarding in the San Bernardino Mountains in Southern California with his family. They would often stay in a van in the parking lots of ski resorts.

Becoming a Pro Athlete

Skateboarding Journey

Shaun's amazing skills on a skateboard were noticed early on. When he was nine, famous skateboarder Tony Hawk became his friend and helped him. Shaun became a professional skateboarder at age 16. Shaun has said that Tony Hawk was his hero. He tried to impress Tony with his skateboarding whenever he saw him.

Shaun has won many skateboarding titles. He was the first person to compete in and win both the Summer and Winter X Games in different sports.

Snowboarding Journey

Shaun started snowboarding at age six, following his older brother Jesse. By age seven, he got his first sponsor. Shaun has competed in five Winter Olympics. He won gold medals in the snowboard halfpipe event at the 2006, 2010, and 2018 Winter Olympics.

Shaun has also won many medals at the Winter X Games every year since 2002. By 2013, he had 18 medals (13 gold, 3 silver, 2 bronze). He was the first male athlete to win four gold medals in a row in the snowboard slopestyle event.

2006 Olympic Gold

At the 2006 Winter Olympics, Shaun won a gold medal in the halfpipe. In the finals, he scored 46.8 points out of a possible 50 to win. Another American, Danny Kass, won the silver medal.

Success in 2008

In 2008, Shaun won his third straight snowboard halfpipe title at the U.S. Open Snowboarding Championships. He also won his third US Open slopestyle competition. He was named the first "Burton Global Open Champion" in 2007.

On November 16, 2008, Shaun released his first video game, Shaun White Snowboarding. It was a very popular game.

2009 Wins

White with Richard Branson in 2009

Shaun won the SuperPipe event at the 2009 Winter X Games. He became the second person to win a gold medal in the SuperPipe in two years in a row. He also won a gold medal in Slopestyle that year.

On February 14, 2009, Shaun won the FIS World Cup Men's Halfpipe event. He scored 47.3 points, which was the highest score ever in FIS halfpipe at that time.

2010 Olympic Gold

At the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, Shaun won another gold medal in the halfpipe. He scored 46.8 points on his first run. He then did a special second run, called a victory lap, and performed a difficult trick called the Double McTwist 1260, which he named "The Tomahawk." This run earned him a record score of 48.4 points.

X Games Dominance

In 2011, Shaun won his fourth straight gold medal in the SuperPipe at the Winter X Games in Aspen, Colorado. He landed his famous Double McTwist 1260 and scored 97.33 points. This score tied an X Games record that Shaun had set the year before.

At Winter X in 2012, Shaun made history again. He became the first person in the Winter X Games to score a perfect 100 in the men's Snowboard SuperPipe. In 2013, he won his sixth SuperPipe victory in a row.

2014 Olympics

Shaun finished fourth in the Halfpipe event at the 2014 Winter Olympics. During these games, he was the most talked-about Olympic athlete on Facebook.

2018 Olympic Gold

White after winning a medal at the 2018 Winter Olympics

While training for the 2018 Winter Olympics in New Zealand, Shaun had an accident. He crashed and needed 62 stitches in his face. Despite this, he qualified for the 2018 US Olympic Team.

On February 14, he won his third Olympic gold medal for the Men's Halfpipe event with a score of 97.75. He won dramatically with two back-to-back 1440s in his final run. His gold medal was also the 100th for the United States at the Winter Olympic Games.

2022 Olympics and Retirement

Shaun finished fourth in the halfpipe at the 2022 Winter Olympics. During these games, he announced that it would be his last Olympics. Later, he said it would be his final competition ever.

Sponsorships and Business

Shaun has had sponsors since he was seven years old. He has worked with many big companies like Burton Snowboards, Oakley, Inc., Target Corporation, and Red Bull. In 2009, Forbes magazine estimated he earned $9 million from his sponsors in 2008.

Shaun has also appeared in several video games. He was in Cool Boarders 4 (1999) and Shaun Palmer's Pro Snowboarder (2001). He later released his own video game series, starting with Shaun White Snowboarding in 2008.

In 2016, Shaun bought a part of Mammoth Resorts. This means he is now a part-owner of ski areas like Mammoth Mountain and Bear Mountain, where he first started snowboarding.

Since 2014, Shaun has been in charge of the Air + Style festival, which combines music and snowboarding. In January 2022, he launched his own brand called 'Whitespace'. This company will sell outerwear, snowboards, athletic gear, and clothing.

Media and Music

Acting Roles

Shaun has appeared as himself in movies and TV shows. He was in the 2011 film Friends with Benefits and the 2014 Disney Channel movie Cloud 9. He also had a cameo in the animated TV series American Dad! and the Nickelodeon show Henry Danger.

He was featured in documentaries like The White Album (2004) and First Descent (2005). In 2007, he appeared on the reality TV show The Girls Next Door as a snowboarding teacher.

Music Career

Shaun plays guitar in an electronic rock band called Bad Things. He got his first guitar as a prize in a snowboarding competition. The band played at the Lollapalooza festival in 2013. Their first album came out in January 2014.

In October 2013, Shaun was in the music video for "City of Angels" by Thirty Seconds to Mars.

Personal Life

Shaun White has been nicknamed "The Flying Tomato" because of his red hair. He used to wear headbands with a flying tomato logo, but he grew tired of the name. He has also been called "Animal," like the character from The Muppet Show.

Shaun has helped grant 17 wishes through the Make-A-Wish Foundation since 2008. This foundation helps children with critical illnesses.

Shaun started dating actress Nina Dobrev in 2020. They became engaged on October 30, 2024.

Awards and Recognition

Won 10 ESPY Awards for Best Male Action Sports Athlete and Best Male U.S. Olympic Athlete.
Featured on the cover of Forbes magazine’s “30 under 30” issue in 2016.
Won the Laureus World Sports Awards for Action Sportsperson of the Year in 2008.
Named Best Male Athlete of PyeongChang 2018 at the ANOC Gala Awards 2018.

Images for kids

White in 2018
White with Richard Branson in 2009
White after winning a medal at the 2018 Winter Olympics