Alex Deibold, who went from wax tech to Olympic medalist, retires from snowboarding
Alex Deibold, who went from a U.S. snowboard cross team wax technician at the 2010 Olympics to winning a bronze medal in 2014, retired from major competition at age 36.
“Last month I raced my final World Cup,” Deibold posted on social media. “After almost 20 years on the @ussnowboardteam I still don’t really know what to say other than thank you. Thank you to my family. Thank you to my teammates, coaches, team managers, trainers, doctors, and physios. Thank you to my competitors. To the people that tore me down and to the people who built me back up – you have taught me things I couldn’t learn anywhere else. And for all of this, I am grateful. I love snowboarding now was much as I did in 1990 when I started, and I can’t wait to see what new riding adventures await. I’m both terrified and excited for whatever is next.”
Deibold, whose uncle owns the famed Pepe pizzeria in New Haven, Connecticut, was competing in the X Games before snowboard cross made its Olympic debut at the 2006 Torino Games.
He was an alternate to a deep U.S. team for the 2010 Vancouver Olympics and invited to serve as the team’s wax technician.
Deibold went back to competing and earned his first World Cup podiums in 2013 to clinch a spot on the 2014 Sochi Olympic team. In the final in Russia, he overtook a French rider near the bottom of the course to earn the bronze medal.
Deibold did not perform well enough to make the 2018 Olympic team.
He was one of the last riders to make the 2022 Olympic team. Then six days before the Opening Ceremony, Deibold broke a bone in his back and sustained a concussion in a race crash. He was replaced on the Olympic team.
He returned last season with a best World Cup finish of 25th.
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Alex Deibold, who went from wax tech to Olympic medalist, retires from snowboarding originally appeared on NBCSports.com
