Nick Goepper’s sudden fall during the halfpipe final cost him a place on the podium on Friday February 21.
The 35-year-old American skier claimed the bronze medal when he began his final descent in the men’s freestyle half-pipe skiing event at Livigno Snowpark in Milan.
Goepper did everything perfectly until his fifth and final jump, where he didn’t reach enough height on his jump and crashed on the edge of the half-pipe.
After the brutal accident, Goepper provided an injury update to his fans via a post on his Instagram account.
He wrote: “I’m fine. » Goepper said alongside a photo of himself sitting in a hospital bed.
Goepper, while giving an update on the injury, added: “Huge skin break and bruise on the knee, but otherwise everything is fine. It was a long night at the hospital checking things out.”
While applauding his fans’ support, he concluded, “Thank you for all the love. I’ll be back soon.”
After the accident, Goepper walked the rest of the pipe on his own, waving to the crowd with two thumbs up as they roared and he appeared to laugh about his sore back.
The pressure fell on the last skier and Goepper, a three-time Olympic medalist who is making his fourth appearance at the Winter Games, almost fell off the podium, seeing his chance of a medal slip away.
Goepper, a 31-year-old from Indiana who made waves wearing jeans during the Winter Olympics practice session, advanced to the men’s half-pipe final among the best.
Goepper and Ferreira were roommates last week.
Alex Ferriera, who won the gold medal in the men’s freestyle event, commented on his teammate.
Ferreira said: “Nick has huge balls.”
“Nick is a fierce competitor. He’s a great teammate. I really thought he was going to make that run. It was very surprising to me that he didn’t,” Ferreira continued.
“But he went for it. And he told me at the end: ‘I don’t regret anything.’
For those who don’t know him, Nick Goepper is from Lawrenceburg, Indiana, a small town near Cincinnati that borders Indiana, Ohio, and Kentucky.
He has already won eight X Games medals and secured second place in the superpipe in Aspen before these Olympics.
