At 44 years old, Michigan snowboarder Nick Baumgartner knew he could compete against his younger competitors — and that’s exactly what he did.
The oldest snowboarder on Team USA by 14 years, Baumgartner said his age actually brings him an edge, and that edge came in handy Thursday when Baumgartner launched an impressive series of runs in snowboard cross, nearly reaching the medal final.
Though he started off with one of the worst finishes in the first seeding run, Baumgartner redeemed himself in the second seeding, and again in the 1/8 finals, where he finished second after narrowly – and strategically – avoiding a crash that took out two of his competitors.
In the quarterfinals, Baumgartner launched an impressive last-minute surge that saw him taking first in his wave.
His former teammate, who Baumgartner won gold with in Beijing, Lindsey Jacobellis, was a commentator for the race and could hardly contain her excitement.
Then came the semifinals, and Baumgartner seemed to have done it again. A tight race left his future in the balance as a photo finish was evaluated by judges.
Baumgartner lost by a mere inches, but that didn’t wipe the smile from his face. He went on to finish seventh in the event and will have one more shot at a gold medal repeat.
Baumgartner, now in his fifth Olympics, has already proven himself against younger competitors.
“I’m in a sport against children,” Baumgartner told NBC News. “Snowboarding is dominated by youth, and to have a guy like me, the elder statesman, I love it, man. It makes me proud.”
At the 2026 Winter Olympics, the snowboarding veteran is going for his second gold medal, and he could have one more chance in the mixed team event.
“When I show up and I beat these kids and they have to go home and tell their parents they lost to someone their age, that’s inspirational,” he told NBC Olympics. “They’re going to put in the work so that they come back and they’re going to be better.”
Baumgartner entered the 2026 Games as one of at least five athletes over the age of 40 competing for Team USA.
On Thursday morning he was the oldest athlete to compete for the U.S. these Games, but he was surpassed when 54-year-old Minnesota curler Rich Ruohonen, an alternate for Team USA, was subbed into a match and became the oldest American to ever compete in a Winter Olympics.
Baumgartner, who prior to his gold medal poured concrete to fund his snowboarding journey, knows he’s testing the limits of his body.
“Trying to stay young and pouring concrete do not go together,” he told NBC Olympics. “It would have been very tough had I not won that gold medal to fund this and to keep doing this.”
But he credits, in part, his upbringing in the Upper Peninsula with his resilience.
“I get asked all the time how I made it to this level from where I came from,” Baumgartner said. “People think it’s a disadvantage. I think it’s our strength. We have to work harder for everything we get.”
And his incredible work ethic speaks for itself.
“I’ve learned to outwork everyone, if I worked out as hard as I do now when I was in my prime, heck, I could have been unstoppable,” he said.
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from NBC Chicago https://ift.tt/WY2SyDT
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