{"id":803386,"date":"2020-01-23T10:16:00","date_gmt":"2020-01-23T17:16:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.summitdaily.com\/news\/maddie-bowman-a-five-time-x-games-champion-announces-retirement-from-competition-at-26\/"},"modified":"2020-01-23T10:16:00","modified_gmt":"2020-01-23T17:16:00","slug":"maddie-bowman-a-five-time-x-games-champion-announces-retirement-from-competition-at-26","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/local-news\/maddie-bowman-a-five-time-x-games-champion-announces-retirement-from-competition-at-26\/","title":{"rendered":"Maddie Bowman, a five-time X Games champion, announces retirement from competition at 26"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"swift-gallery p402_hide\" readability=\"6.7440225035162\">\n<ul id=\"imageGallery-377757-893\" class=\"gallery list-unstyled\">\n<li data-thumb=\"https:\/\/cdn.summitdaily.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/01\/maddiebowman-atd-012120-1-150x150.jpg\" data-src=\"https:\/\/cdn.summitdaily.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/01\/maddiebowman-atd-012120-1-1024x682.jpg\" data-sub-html=\"Anna Stonehouse \/ The Aspen Times | Tahoe's Maddie Bowman, a five-time X Games Aspen champion in women's halfpipe skiing, announced Monday she was retiring from competition.\" class=\"h-100\" readability=\"-0.5\">\n<div class=\"caption\" readability=\"10\">\n<p><strong>Tahoe&#8217;s Maddie Bowman, a five-time X Games Aspen champion in women&#8217;s halfpipe skiing, announced Monday she was retiring from competition.<\/strong><br \/>Anna Stonehouse \/ The Aspen Times<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"row no-gutters h-100\">\n<div class=\"col my-auto\"> <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.summitdaily.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/01\/maddiebowman-atd-012120-1-1024x682.jpg\" data-no-lazy=\"1\" alt=\"Tahoe's Maddie Bowman, a five-time X Games Aspen champion in women's halfpipe skiing, announced Monday she was retiring from competition.\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li data-thumb=\"https:\/\/cdn.summitdaily.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/01\/maddiebowman-atd-012120-1-1-150x150.jpg\" data-src=\"https:\/\/cdn.summitdaily.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/01\/maddiebowman-atd-012120-1-1-1024x682.jpg\" data-sub-html=\"Anna Stonehouse\/The Aspen Times | U.S. freeskier Maddie Bowman practices before the women's ski superpipe finals for X Games 2018 at Buttermilk Ski Area.\" class=\"h-100\" readability=\"-1.5\">\n<div class=\"caption\" readability=\"8\">\n<p><strong>U.S. freeskier Maddie Bowman practices before the women&#8217;s ski superpipe finals for X Games 2018 at Buttermilk Ski Area.<\/strong><br \/>Anna Stonehouse\/The Aspen Times<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"row no-gutters h-100\">\n<div class=\"col my-auto\"> <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.summitdaily.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/01\/maddiebowman-atd-012120-1-1-1024x682.jpg\" data-no-lazy=\"1\" alt=\"U.S. freeskier Maddie Bowman practices before the women's ski superpipe finals for X Games 2018 at Buttermilk Ski Area.\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li data-thumb=\"https:\/\/cdn.summitdaily.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/01\/maddiebowman-atd-012120-1-2-150x150.jpg\" data-src=\"https:\/\/cdn.summitdaily.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/01\/maddiebowman-atd-012120-1-2-1024x681.jpg\" data-sub-html=\"Anna Stonehouse\/The Aspen Times | U.S. freeskier Maddie Bowman is interviewed after winning the women's ski superpipe finals for X Games Aspen 2018 at Buttermilk. The Tahoe legend announced her retirement from competitive skiing on Monday.\" class=\"h-100\" readability=\"-1\">\n<div class=\"caption\" readability=\"9\">\n<p><strong>U.S. freeskier Maddie Bowman is interviewed after winning the women&#8217;s ski superpipe finals for X Games Aspen 2018 at Buttermilk. The Tahoe legend announced her retirement from competitive skiing on Monday.<\/strong><br \/>Anna Stonehouse\/The Aspen Times<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"row no-gutters h-100\">\n<div class=\"col my-auto\"> <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.summitdaily.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/01\/maddiebowman-atd-012120-1-2-1024x681.jpg\" data-no-lazy=\"1\" alt=\"U.S. freeskier Maddie Bowman is interviewed after winning the women's ski superpipe finals for X Games Aspen 2018 at Buttermilk. The Tahoe legend announced her retirement from competitive skiing on Monday.\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li data-thumb=\"https:\/\/cdn.summitdaily.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/01\/maddiebowman-atd-012120-1-3-150x150.jpg\" data-src=\"https:\/\/cdn.summitdaily.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/01\/maddiebowman-atd-012120-1-3-1024x682.jpg\" data-sub-html=\"Anna Stonehouse\/The Aspen Times Anna Stonehouse\/The Aspen Times | Maddie Bowman smiles during a prior X Games Aspen competition.\" class=\"h-100\" readability=\"-1.5\">\n<div class=\"caption\" readability=\"8\">\n<p><strong>Maddie Bowman smiles during a prior X Games Aspen competition.<\/strong><br \/>Anna Stonehouse\/The Aspen Times Anna Stonehouse\/The Aspen Times<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"row no-gutters h-100\">\n<div class=\"col my-auto\"> <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.summitdaily.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/01\/maddiebowman-atd-012120-1-3-1024x682.jpg\" data-no-lazy=\"1\" alt=\"Maddie Bowman smiles during a prior X Games Aspen competition.\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p class=\"caption-toggle\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.summitdaily.com\/news\/maddie-bowman-a-five-time-x-games-champion-announces-retirement-from-competition-at-26\/#\" class=\"show-captions\">Show Captions<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.summitdaily.com\/news\/maddie-bowman-a-five-time-x-games-champion-announces-retirement-from-competition-at-26\/#\" class=\"hide-captions\">Hide Captions<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText DropCap\">A five-time X Games Aspen gold medalist, Maddie Bowman\u2019s favorite medal might actually be silver. She won it in 2012, her first of an eventual seven medals won in the Buttermilk superpipe in what was always her favorite event of the season.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cThat\u2019s what really slingshot my career,\u201d Bowman told The Aspen Times on Monday afternoon via phone from her home in Tahoe. \u201cI\u2019m actually sitting here looking at my X Games medals right now. X Games was the highlight of every season for me. It was everything.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">With X Games Aspen set to get underway for the 19th consecutive season this week at Buttermilk, Bowman\u2019s absence is sure to be noticed. The freeskiing pioneer, who is only 26, announced Monday she was retiring from competitive halfpipe skiing. She won\u2019t make the trip to Aspen, a byproduct of having her tonsils recently removed, but wanted to make sure the announcement was made before this week\u2019s contest.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cIt\u2019s going to be the hardest event not to be a part of anymore, for sure. X Games was always my favorite event, no matter what. It is the heart and soul of what we do,\u201d Bowman said. \u201cI kind of came to this conclusion that I had met all my goals I had set out for myself. I had done that.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cI felt like halfpipe skiing is going in such a great direction and I don\u2019t know if I can continue to contribute to that. And I also have so many other fun things happening in my life besides halfpipe skiing, so I kind of saw this as my moment. I\u2019m happy with what I did and I\u2019m ready to step away.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">A native of South Lake Tahoe in California, Bowman made her X Games Aspen debut in 2011 when she subbed in as an alternate, finishing eighth. A year later, she won that coveted silver and went on to rewrite the record books from there. She won Aspen gold in 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2018, with a 2017 bronze thrown into the mix. Bowman also won bronze at X Games Tignes (2013) and silver at X Games Oslo (2016).<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">Bowman\u2019s other big claim to fame was winning 2014 Olympic gold in Sochi, Russia, the first time halfpipe skiing was an Olympic sport. She also competed in the 2018 Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea, finishing sixth. U.S. teammate and close friend Brita Sigourney won Olympic bronze that year.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cMaddie has been a huge influence, not only to me, but to the entire sport of women\u2019s halfpipe skiing,\u201d Sigourney said in a U.S. Ski and Snowboard news release. \u201cShe led us to where we are now with her constant progression of technical tricks years ahead of the rest of the game. She was a fierce competitor and always fun to watch, even when she was beating me at every contest.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">Along with that first silver medal, Bowman said she covets her gold from 2018. After winning four straight contests in Aspen, she settled for a mere third in 2017 and claimed she wasn\u2019t skiing at a high level well into the 2017-18 competition season. Getting back to the top of the X Games podium in 2018 was a big deal for the Californian and will be a memory she carries fondly into retirement.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">Bowman finished fifth at X Games Aspen 2019 in what looks to have been her final time dropping into the Buttermilk superpipe in a competition.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cIt\u2019s way more than I ever dreamed of. I\u2019m super thankful for the time I\u2019ve had in my career. It really is my favorite event and to be able to win it so many times was pretty awesome,\u201d Bowman said. \u201cIt was not a light decision (to retire), but I know I made the right decision for myself.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">Among those who inspired Bowman was the late Sarah Burke, the Canadian who won X Games Aspen gold four times, including in 2011, the year Bowman first competed. Burke died a year later in a training accident in Utah.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">One reason Bowman is willing to step away from the sport is she feels women\u2019s halfpipe skiing is in good hands. Young stars like Canada\u2019s Rachael Karker, China\u2019s Kexin Zhang and Estonian superstar Kelly Sildaru have her excited for its future.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cI definitely trust those girls to take care of it and I\u2019m excited to watch young girls like Kelly take that challenge on,\u201d Bowman said. \u201cWhen I think about Kelly, in a lot of ways I think about Sarah and I think about how humble Sarah was and how humble Kelly is and that just makes me happy for the future of halfpipe skiing.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">As for Bowman\u2019s future, she isn\u2019t going to stop skiing. She\u2019s become close with Hazel Birnbaum, a professional big mountain skier, and wants to endeavor more into that sort of terrain. Bowman has long loved the mountains of Chamonix, France, which is notorious for its big mountain backcountry, and plans to spend the remainder of this winter exploring what it has to offer.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">Her and Sigourney would spend a week there most winters. Now, Bowman hopes to make it more of a second home, at least for the next few months.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cI told myself someday I would live there and I think this is my moment to do that,\u201d Bowman said. \u201cI just have learned so much from (Birnbaum) about skiing in the bigger mountain aspect and in the backcountry and I\u2019m really excited to continue to explore that. I thought, what other place besides Chamonix?\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">Bowman also is working on finishing a degree in biology from Sierra Nevada College, with intentions of one day becoming a high school science teacher.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">While she won\u2019t make it to X Games Aspen 2020, despite her friend Sigourney competing, she plans to return in the future as a spectator.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cIt\u2019s going to be hard not being there and Aspen is such a wonderful place to have it,\u201d Bowman said. \u201cI did want to make the announcement before X Games. That was really important for me. X Games was everything.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText Tagline\"><a href=\"mailto:acolbert@aspentimes.com\">acolbert@aspentimes.com<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.summitdaily.com\/news\/maddie-bowman-a-five-time-x-games-champion-announces-retirement-from-competition-at-26\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">via:: Summit Daily<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Tahoe&#8217;s Maddie Bowman, a five-time X Games Aspen champion in women&#8217;s halfpipe skiing, announced Monday she was retiring from competition.Anna Stonehouse \/ The Aspen Times U.S. freeskier Maddie Bowman practices before the women&#8217;s ski superpipe finals for X Games 2018 at Buttermilk Ski Area.Anna Stonehouse\/The Aspen Times U.S. freeskier Maddie Bowman is interviewed after winning [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[99],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-803386","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-local-news"},"acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-07-24 22:52:42","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"KSMT The Mountain","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/803386","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=803386"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/803386\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=803386"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=803386"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=803386"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}