Shaun White Retires From The Slopestyle Event

Shaun White Retires From The Sochi Slopestyle Event

While the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics has yet to begin some athletes have already changed their competing schedule to improve their chances at certain events while pulling out of others.

American snowboarder Shaun White for example has retired from the slopestyle event to focus on the half pipe, where he has won two consecutive Olympic gold medals. Canadian riders Sebastien Toutant and Max Parrot, White’s rivals in more than one event didn’t miss the opportunity to criticize the rider’s decision. They both posted messages on Twitter accusing White of pulling out because he knows he wouldn’t stand a chance of winning the competition.

Toutant said that White’s reason for retiring in fear of potential injury was fake, and that he just used it as an excuse to sit out an event he knew he would never win. His Canadian teammate Parrot also said that White is “scared” to compete because he knows he couldn’t win the event.

White and Canadian rider Mark McMorris were considered favorites for the slopestyle event. Their rivalry started back in 2013, just prior to the X-Games when McMorris said White does not dominate slopestyle.

White’s decision seems to be motivated by a wrist injury he suffered during a practice run at the Sochi slopestyle circuit.

Posted by Andre Monohan on Friday February 07 2014, 4:01 AM EST. Ref: thestar. Link. All trademarks acknowledged. Filed under Featured News. Comments and Trackbacks closed. Follow responses: RSS 2.0