Nick Goepper provides injury update after crashing out of Olympic halfpipe podium
Nick Goepper’s brutal crash in the halfpipe final costs him a podium spot on Friday, February 21.
The 35-year-old American skier was in the bronze medal spot when he began his last run in the men’s halfpipe freestyle skiing event at Livigno Snowpark in Milan.
Goepper landed everything perfectly until his fifth and final jump, when he didn’t get enough height on his leap and crashed into the halfpipe edge.
After the brutal crash, Goepper provides an injury update to his fans through a post on his Instagram handle.
He wrote, “I am OK.” said Goepper alongside a snap of him sitting in a hospital bed.
Goepper while providing an update to the injury, added, “Massive skin bang and a tweaked knee but otherwise all good. It’s been a long night in the hospital getting things checked out.
While applauding his fans’ support, he concluded, “Thanks for all the love. Will check back in soon.”
After the crash, Goepper walked down the rest of the pipe on his own, waving to the crowd with two thumbs up as they roared and he seemed to laugh off his back pain.
The pressure fell to the last skier and Goepper, a three-time Olympic medalist who is in his fourth appearance at the Winter Games, was nearly crashed out off the podium, watching his chance slip away at a medal.
Goepper, a 31-year-old from Indiana who made waves for wearing jeans for the training session at the Winter Olympics, qualified for the men’s halfpipe final among the top finishers.
Goepper and Ferreira have been roommates this past week.
Alex Ferriera, who emerged as the gold medalist at the men’s free skiing event, commented on his fellow teammate.
Ferreira said, “Nick’s got huge balls.”
“Nick is a ferocious competitor. He’s a great teammate. I really thought he was gonna land that run. It was super surprising to me that he didn’t,” Ferreira continued.
“But he went for it. And he said to me at the end, ‘I regret nothing.”
For the unversed, Nick Goepper is from Lawrenceburg, Indiana, a tiny town near Cincinnati that borders Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky.
He has previously won to eight X Games medals and secured second place in the superpipe in Aspen leading up to these Olympics.
