Cameron Spencer/Getty ImagesRedemption!
After falling short at the 2014 Sochi Games, Shaun White returned to the 2018 Winter Olympics with all eyes on a gold medal in his signature halfpipe event. Today he did just that, making history as snowboarding's first-three time Olympic gold medalist. Additionally, the 31-year-old becomes the first athlete to win Olympic gold 12 years apart.
This also marks Team USA's 100th gold medal overall at the Winter Games.
After a pair of flawless runs, White entered his third and final run in second place behind Team Japan's Ayumu Hirano. The "Flying Tomato," as he's lovingly called, performed perfectly under pressure. As his near-perfect score of 97.75 was announced, Shaun threw his snowboard into the air, dropped to his knees and broke down in tears of joy.
Aside from his athletic achievements, White has recently received negative attention for a 2016 sexual harassment lawsuit filed against him by the former drummer of his rock band, Bad Things. In the newly resurfaced court documents, Lena Zawaideh claimed White made vulgar remarks to her and forced her to watch "sexually disturbing videos." White called the lawsuit "bogus," and in 2017 a private settlement was reached.
Just yesterday, White's teammate, 17-year-old Chloe Kim, made history as the youngest woman to medal in snowboarding. The U.S. has now topped the podium in all four snowboarding events at PyeongChang, with Red Gerard winning men's slopestyle and Jamie Anderson taking the gold in women's slopestyle.
Congratulations, Team USA!