A legend walks away

One of the great things about covering the Olympics is getting the chance to see some of the best athletes in the world compete on the biggest stage.

I was honored to be able to see Lindsey Vonn ski her final Olympic race in PyeongChang in 2018 and watch Allyson Felix run her final Olympic race in Tokyo this summer. Additionally, I got to see Katie Ledecky swim this summer in Tokyo and I've now had the honor of seeing Chloe Kim hit the halfpipe in two different Olympics.

Today I got to watch another icon of his sport say his goodbye with one final competition and it was truly special.

Shaun White has been to five Olympics, won three halfpipe gold medals and countless competitions over the years but as had been speculated coming in to the Beijing Games, he announced that these Olympics would be his final competition. He fought hard to earn a spot on the Olympic team and then put down a heck of a final run in qualifying to earn a spot in the finals, which took place this morning in the mountains outside Beijing.

After a solid but not spectacular first run, White put up a strong score of 85 in his second run, which at the time propelled him into second place. By the time his turn came around again, he was sitting in fourth place and needed a big finish to get into the medals.

It didn't happen, he fell about halfway down the pipe and had to settle for his 85, which left him in fourth place overall. He made his way down the halfpipe to a huge ovation from the crowd gathered in the finish area. Overcome with emotion, he awaited his final score and when it was announced, he got another ovation.

Shaun White has done everything he can in his sport, it has been his life for so long now and he is probably the most famous snowboarder in the world. He has nothing left to accomplish in the world of snowboarding and choosing to step away at this time was surely the best decision for him.

Shaun White is a legend. Shaun White will forever by synonymous with snowboarding. And Shaun White can walk away with his head held high as one of the best to ever strap on a board.

It was an honor getting to see his final competition.

Some moron standing in front of the halfpipe where Chloe Kim and Shaun White stole the show the last few days.