Shaun White

White was born in San Diego, California, to Cathy and Roger White, and grew up alongside his brother Jesse and sister Kari. As an infant, he was diagnosed with tetralogy of Fallot, a congenital heart defect that required him to undergo two open-heart surgeries before he reached the age of one. He spent his early childhood traveling to the San Bernardino Mountains with his family to ski and snowboard. His distinctive bright red hair earned him the widely recognized nickname "The Flying Tomato" early in his athletic career, though he was also called "Animal" by peers. In 2012, White cut his long red hair and donated it to Locks of Love, a non-profit organization providing hairpieces to children experiencing medical hair loss.

White was in a relationship with musician Sarah Barthel of the band Phantogram from 2013 to 2019. He began dating actress Nina Dobrev in 2020. The couple announced their engagement in October 2024, before separating and ending their engagement in September 2025.

Throughout his career, White has participated in philanthropic work, including granting 17 wishes through the Make-A-Wish Foundation and supporting St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. In 2016, former Bad Things drummer Lena Zawaideh filed a lawsuit against White alleging sexual harassment and breach of contract. The matter concluded in May 2017 with an undisclosed out-of-court settlement, and White later issued a public apology for comments he made regarding the case during a 2018 press conference.

White qualified for his first Olympic team in 2006 after sweeping all five selection events in the halfpipe. At the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, he overcame a low-scoring first qualification run to advance to the final, where he captured his first Olympic gold medal with a score of 46.8 points.

Four years later at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, White secured his second consecutive gold medal. Having scored high enough on his opening run in the final to guarantee victory, he used his second run as a victory lap, successfully executing his signature double McTwist 1260 trick, dubbed "The Tomahawk," to earn an Olympic-record score of 48.4 points. After placing fourth at the 2014 Sochi Games, White faced a major setback in 2017 when a halfpipe training accident in New Zealand caused facial injuries requiring 62 stitches. He recovered to make the 2018 Olympic team in Pyeongchang, where he rallied on his final run with back-to-back 1440s to earn a score of 97.75, securing his third gold medal and the 100th Winter Olympic gold in United States history. He closed out his competitive career at the 2022 Beijing Games, finishing in fourth place.

In addition to snowboarding, White established an elite career in skateboarding. At age nine, he met professional skateboarder Tony Hawk at a local skate park in Encinitas, California. Hawk took on a mentorship role, guiding White through his development until he turned professional in skateboarding as a teenager.

White became a fixture at both the Summer and Winter X Games. In the Winter X Games, he dominated the superpipe and slopestyle disciplines, capturing a record 13 titles and achieving a quadruple win streak in slopestyle. In 2012, he became the first competitor in Winter X Games history to earn a perfect score of 100 in the men's snowboard superpipe. At the Summer X Games, White claimed gold medals in the skateboarding vert competition in 2007 and 2011, establishing his status as one of the few dual-sport athletes to reach the top tier in both winter and summer action sports.

Outside of competition, White expanded into entertainment and commerce. He formed Shaun White Enterprises to oversee his brand collaborations, clothing lines, and video game titles, including the 2008 release Shaun White Snowboarding. In 2016, he acquired a minority ownership stake in Mammoth Resorts, covering several California ski destinations where he learned to ride. He also served as the guitarist for the electronic rock band Bad Things, which performed at major events including Lollapalooza in 2013.

In 2022, White launched Whitespace, an active lifestyle and equipment brand producing outerwear and snowboards. In 2024, he established The Snow League, a professional league designed to provide structured competition and substantial prize money for snowboarding and freeskiing athletes. Backed by venture funding and a broadcast partnership with NBC and Peacock, The Snow League hosted its inaugural competition in Aspen, Colorado, in March 2025.