Snowboarding Mogul Shaun White Out for More Gold

Shawn White has set the standard for the adrenaline filled sport like no other snowboarder to date has. Snowboarding as an Olympic sport first made its début in 1998 at the Olympic Winter Games in Nagano, Japan. The event did not go off without its controversy as several boarders boycotted the first ever Olympic event on the grounds corruption amongst the official appointed federation for the sport. That was 12 years ago, and now the sport is both respected and revered by the Olympic world of sport and sportsmen alike.

Still the snowboarding world's favorite and one to watch is the red headed American named Shawn White. White has risen and risen in sporting ranks to the level of super duper celebrity stardom within the sports world and the planet known as Earth. Known not just for his on snow sporting skills the eccentric American is also greatly known for his flaming red hair. A garage-band guitarist in his spear time makes this all American guy one of the most sought after by marketing gurus on the planet. Since bursting onto the snowboarding scene more than 10 y ears ago, White has claimed 13 American medals to date with the sky as his only limits. As the brightest star at the Vancouver Winter Games, White simply did what his arguably does best on and off the slopes.

A winner of an Olympic gold medal in the Torino Games 2006, White is looking to repeat history with another gold medal triumphant win on Feb. 17. The star power of this very talented snowboarder attracts legions of fans and followers everywhere the extreme sport is featured. His performance alone attracts enormous numbers to events where he is specifically featured in any given sporting ocassion. Sponsors and sport executives sing his praises with delight. "He's the one action sports athlete that we can point to in our coverage where ratings go up when he's competing," says ESPN X Games creator and founder Ron Semiao. "It's very quantifiable."

Described as a 'global phenomenon', White is only 23 young years old. He has definitely solidified his mark on 21st century status of mega celebrity and beyond. His officially medal tally reads respectfully with nine ESPN Winter X Games gold medals (four in superpipe, five in slopestyle) for snowboarding. For his skills as a vert ramp skateboarder, he has won one gold, one silver and one bronze in the Summer X Games and three gold medals in the Summer Dew Tour. Did I mention that the sky was the only limits for this guy?