Adam Smith - Alpine Snowboarder

Growing up in Bend, Oregon, Adam focused his early athletic years on skiing and soccer but by the ripe old age of nine he had made the transition to snowboarding. Sixteen years later his board had carried him all over the world and in 2003, to his first US National Championship title. His size, strength (6’2”, 225 lbs.) make him an unusually powerful rider, well suited for the alpine discipline. He has established himself as a regular podium threat through nine Nor-Am Cup medals and four World Cup podiums, including his first win/gold medal in Landgraaf, Holland and a near miss on the World Championships podium (4th). Perhaps most remarkably, Adam has achieved all of this despite dealing with severe asthma and having broken his back along the way – twice! He is determined to realize his Olympic dream.

Growing up in Bend, Oregon, Adam focused his early athletic years on skiing and soccer but by the ripe old age of nine he had made the transition to snowboarding. Sixteen years later his board has carried him all over the world until, in 2003, Adam claimed his first US National Championship title. Early last season he became a regular top-ten finisher and soon thereafter claimed his first World Cup gold medal in Landgraaf, Holland. By year’s end, he was battling for a spot on the World Championship’s podium, finishing just off the stand in fourth place but not before making his mark as one to watch at next year’s Olympic

Games.

" '05 is when everything really started to click for me. I was regularly within striking distance of the podium, grabbed my first gold medal and then ended the year with a solid showing at the World Championships. That success has been a great source of motivation to keep pushing myself ever harder, and it's also brought with it a sense of calm and confidence, knowing that I've proven I can win. Missing the '06 (Olympic) Team was tough. You work so hard for something, come back from the injuries and all, the it just doesn't work out they way you expected...some people might have walked away after that but I just felt like I still had more to give to the sport and really, to myself. To come back with the Race to the Cup win last season was another big confidence booster that my commitment to stick it out for 2010 was the right decision. All of these ups and downs have me made a much, much tougher athlete, especially mentally. I'm ready for Vancouver right now!"