WATCH: GoPro footage from the helmet cam of Russian Olympian Alexey Sobolev shows just how intense the slopestyle course is – Credit: Vimeo/Alexey Sobolev TV
The snowboard slopestyle course in Sochi has knocked out two Olympic athletes so far, and competition hasn’t even begun.
American snowboarder Shaun White decided to withdraw from the slopestyle event on Wednesday, saying he wants to concentrate on winning a third gold medal in the halfpipe. But according to the Canadian Press, he was also concerned about dangerous conditions on the course.
White was among the favourites in the new Olympic event. He jammed his left wrist during practice Tuesday and when he came off the slopestyle course, he called it “a little intimidating.”
White got off easy, though – Norwegian snowboarder Torstein Horgmo landed on his face and shoulder while attempting a rail trick during training on Monday and broke his collarbone. The injury forced him to withdraw from Olympic competition.
“Injuries and falls are part of this sport, but the timing is really bad,” Horgmo said in a statement released by the Norwegian team.
Read more: Sochi snowboarder injury prompts changes to course layout
On Monday, course officials told reporters they had decided to trim the tops and bottoms off some jumps in response to athletes’ concerns. On Wednesday, they did not return a request to confirm that course changes had been made.
Injuries are common in slopestyle snowboarding, where athletes slide down a hill and do tricks off of rails and jumps. Canadian Mark McMorris, one of the medal favourites this Olympics, broke a rib while competing at the X Games in January. He still plans to compete in Sochi.
Although Global News was unable to reach Canadian athletes for comment, Courtenay, B.C. snowboarder Spencer O’Brien, who will be competing in the women’s slopestyle, wrote on her Facebook page that the media was exaggerating the course’s danger.
“Everything here in the village has been pretty good so far,” she wrote. “The course is not ideal, but this is what we do for a living and we’ll all make the best of it. It’s not too dangerous, the media is just running with any story they can.”
Men’s and women’s slopestyle qualification rounds start Thursday.
With files from the Canadian Press and the Associated Press.
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