Analysis Of Shaun White: Journey Back To White

Shaun White: Journey Back to Gold
Shaun White has been defying gravity ever since a young age. Shaun Roger White was born on September 3rd, 1986, in San Diego, California(“Shaun White” Biography). He was born to Cathy and Roger White, and his two siblings names are Kari and Jesse White(Adams). Shaun’s life consists of numerous victories, but he has had to overcome many obstacles in his way to become one of the most recognized skateboarder and snowboarder in the world. The path within his life resembles the archetypal journey of countless heroes, called the hero’s journey. The hero’s journey commonly consists of twelve steps over their lifetime, showing their hardships and how the hero overcomes the conflicts thrown at them(Vogler 4). Through
In the hero’s journey, the hero is encouraged by wise people who are often older(Vogler 2). Shaun first got into skateboarding after following his older brother, Jesse, to the nearby YMCA(“Shaun White” Biography). His brother also motivated him to take up snowboarding and is Shaun’s best friend and business manager nowadays(Adams). Another major mentor in Shaun’s life is Tony Hawk. As Laura Kelley writes,“One person who took notice in particularly was none other than skateboarding legend and guru Tony Hawk, who was extremely impressed by nine-year-old Shaun’s skills, and he became somewhat of a guru and a mentor to Shaun, taking him under his wing”. These mentors helped Shaun to get through many tests. As Vogler describes, the hero must “pass certain tests and challenges that are part of his training”. Shaun White attends both the winter and summer olympics in the following years. Laura Kelley explains, “Shaun subsequently won the title of Action Sports tour Champion, and competed in (and won) the Summer and Winter X Games, competing in skateboarding and snowboarding”. Shaun exceeds all his competitors and he won 14 medals at Winter X, including nine gold medals, all in superpipe and slopestyle between 2003-09, and won a full set of medals in vert at the Summer X Games, with a gold medal in 2007. He has dominated that circuit ever since, and is an icon among young skateboarders and
Mirroring the archetypal hero’s journey, White fought against his congenital heart defect, survived two open-heart surgeries before he was one, and still had his mind and heart set on being a huge sensation in both skateboarding and snowboarding despite his health. With the help of his mentors, he thrived through his first few tournaments and appearances in the olympics. After the upset of losing in the 2014 Olympics in Sochi, his heart-wrenching crash in October 2017, and his sexual harassment accusations, Shaun White managed to make history with his near-to-perfect run in the halfpipe event in the Pyeongchang Olympics. Bringing home yet another gold medal, Shaun White’s story proves that people can soar after their biggest