Kaitlyn Farrington
{{short description|American former professional snowboarder|bot=PearBOT 5}}
{{use mdy dates|date=February 2014}}
{{Infobox sportsperson
| image =
| caption =
| birth_name = Kaitlyn Brooke Farrington
| full_name = Kaitlyn Farrington Clark
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1989|12|18}}
| birth_place = Hailey, Idaho, U.S.{{cite web |url=http://www.sochi2014.com/en/athlete-kaitlyn-farrington |title=Kaitlyn FARRINGTON | Snowboard | United States – Sochi 2014 Olympics |publisher=Sochi 2014 Olympics |accessdate=February 12, 2014 |archive-date=July 5, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140705052152/http://www.sochi2014.com/en/athlete-kaitlyn-farrington |url-status=dead}}
| residence = Whitefish, Montana, U.S.{{cite web |url=https://explorewhitefish.com/entries/finding-solace-with-olympic-gold-medalist-kaitlyn-farrington/75b88071-4e5b-482e-ba49-26e3881c0ce2 |title='Finding Solace with Olympic Gold Medalist Kaitlyn Farrington' |work=explorewhitefish.com |accessdate=May 18, 2022}}
| height = 5 ft 4 in{{cite web |title=Kaitlyn Farrington |url=http://www.teamusa.org/Athletes/FA/Kaitlyn-Farrington |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140121025953/http://www.teamusa.org/Athletes/FA/Kaitlyn-Farrington |url-status=dead |archive-date=January 21, 2014 |work=teamusa.org |publisher=United States Olympic Committee |accessdate=13 February 2014}}
| weight =
| coach = Elijah TeterBen Boyd
[http://www.laketahoenews.net/2014/02/pro-snowboarder-transitions-coaching-olympians-including-sister-hannah-teter/ Pro snowboarder transitions to coaching Olympians – Lake Tahoe NewsLake Tahoe News]
| medaltemplates =
{{MedalSport|Women's snowboarding}}
{{MedalCountry | {{USA}} }}
{{MedalOlympic }}
{{MedalGold|2014 Sochi |Halfpipe}}
{{MedalCompetition| Winter X Games}}
{{MedalSilver|2011 Aspen |SuperPipe}}
{{MedalBronze|2014 Aspen |SuperPipe}}
}}
Kaitlyn Brooke Farrington (born December 18, 1989) is an American former professional snowboarder and amateur freestyle snowmobiler who grew up on a cattle ranch near Bellevue, Idaho, and now lives in Whitefish, Montana. She won the gold medal in the women's half-pipe competition at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia. Prior to her Olympic debut, she competed in the 2010 European Winter X Games and won the gold medal.{{cite web |title=Results: Women's Snowboard SuperPipe |access-date=13 February 2014 |work=ESPN |date=March 9, 2010 |url=https://www.espn.com/action/xgames/winter/2010/europe/news/story?page=winter-x-games-europe-results-womens-snowboard-pipe}} On December 8, 2022, Farrington was announced as a backup crew member of the dearMoon project, a now-canceled lunar spaceflight mission.{{cite web |title=dearMoon Crew Announcement! |publisher=YouTube |accessdate=8 December 2022 |date=8 December 2022 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9-XXSdcsBLU&t=1s}}
Early life
Farrington was born to parents Gary and Suz Farrington; she has an older sister. The Farringtons own a ranch near Sun Valley, Idaho, and Kaitlyn grew up riding horses. Suz Farrington credited her daughter's smooth style with good balance from riding horses. She was skiing by age three and barrel racing at age five. "She was skiing on a tether for two days, then said, 'I'm done with this stuff,'" remembered Mr. Farrington.{{cite web |url=http://www.teamusa.org/Road-to-Sochi-2014/Features/2014/February/12/Kaitlyn-Farrington-Cowgirls-Up-For-Gold |title=Kaitlyn Farrington “Cowgirls Up” For Gold |website=teamusa.org |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140214023843/http://www.teamusa.org/Road-to-Sochi-2014/Features/2014/February/12/Kaitlyn-Farrington-Cowgirls-Up-For-Gold |archive-date=February 14, 2014}}
By high school, Farrington was competing as a snowboarder, and her parents had to sell the cows on their ranch to pay for expenses.
Career
Farrington is left-handed and uses a goofy stance. She became the first women's rider to perform a backside 1080. She goes about 9 feet high above the edge of the half-pipe, but considers herself as a more technical rider in order to make up for her height. Farrington has had five wrist surgeries.
- 2014 Sochi Olympic Games - Half pipe women - gold medalist
- 2013 FIS Snowboarding World Championships – Women's halfpipe, 4th place, behind Arielle Gold, Holly Crawford, and Sophie Rodriguez.
- 2013 World Cup Sochi, 5th place[https://web.archive.org/web/20150128184827/http://www.teamusa.org/us-ski-and-snowboard/athletes/Kaitlyn-Farrington Athletes. Kaitlyn Farrington] Team USA
- 2013 World Cup Park City, bronze medalist
- 2013 World Cup Copper Mountain, 5th place
- 2012 U.S. Grand Prix overall champion
- 2012 Dew Tour Breckenridge, gold medalist
- 2011 X Games Aspen, silver medalist
- 2011 Dew Tour, silver medalist
- 2010 X Games Europe, gold medalist
- 2010 Dew Tour, overall champion
- 2008 Junior World Championships, silver medalist
On January 16, 2015, Farrington announced via Instagram of her retirement from professional snowboarding at only 25 years of age. In October 2014, Farrington was involved in a fall in Austria while trying to execute a frontside 360 off a small jump. Once returning home to Salt Lake City, Farrington went to get an MRI, to find that she had been diagnosed with congenital cervical stenosis, a congenital spine condition. Doctors told her that competitive snowboarding would put her at great risk of extreme injury due to the condition. Farrington has said "I can walk. I can still snowboard, I just have to keep my feet on the ground".{{cite news |url=https://www.espn.com/olympics/story/_/id/12172344/olympic-gold-medalist-snowboarder-kaitlyn-farrington-retire |title=Kaitlyn Farrington forced to retire |date=January 15, 2015 |publisher=ESPN |access-date=February 1, 2015}}
She was accepted as a backup crewmember for the dearMoon project.[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CE5vdpFlamI 全世界から100万人が応募】dearMoon 最終選考間近、エントリー映像公開！【1M ENTRIES WORLDWIDE】dearMoon Applicants Sneak Peek!][https://twitter.com/yousuckMZ/status/1600978362448900096 Crew for Moon Trip Selected!!] Following launch vehicle delays, dearMoon was cancelled in 2024.{{Cite web |title=x.com |url=https://x.com/dearmoonproject/status/1796759847817625933 |access-date=June 1, 2024 |website=X (formerly Twitter)}}
Personal life
Farrington has a cat named Zilla, after Godzilla.{{cite web |url=http://www.elle.com/pop-culture/celebrities/olympic-gold-medalist-snowboarder-kaitlyn-farrington |title=Gold Medalist Snowboarder Kaitlyn Farrington – Sochi Winter Olympics 2014 |work=Elle |date=February 21, 2014 |accessdate=April 1, 2014}} She collects refrigerator magnets from her travel stops and loves running and music. Farrington said she was listening to Ghostland Observatory's Give Me The Beat when competing in the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia.[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qA2wUCsTWis David Letterman – U.S. Olympic Gold Medalist Kaitlyn Farrington – YouTube]
She recently picked up Frisbee golf and tries to surf, which she calls "drowning".{{cite web |url=https://www.gq.com/blogs/the-feed/2014/02/gqa-kaitlyn-farrington-snowboard-halfpipe-gold-medalist-sochi.html |title=GQ+A: Kaitlyn Farrington, Snowboard Halfpipe Gold Medalist on Partying in Sochi and More |work=GQ |date=February 19, 2014 |accessdate=April 1, 2014}}
A black diamond run on Sun Valley's Bald Mountain was renamed "Kaitlyn's Bowl" in her honor.{{cite web |url=http://www.kboi2.com/news/local/Kaitlyn-Farrington-gold-medalist-sun-valley-idaho-news-248055861.html |title=Gold medalist brings 'surge of energy' to Sun Valley |publisher=KBOI-TV |date=March 1, 2014 |accessdate=March 5, 2014 |author=Michael Locklear}}
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- {{FIS snowboarder}}
- {{Team USA|new_id=kaitlyn-farrington-846643|old_id=FA/Kaitlyn-Farrington|archive=20230610082708}}
- {{Olympics.com|kaitlyn-farrington}}
- {{Olympedia}}
- {{Instagram}}
{{Footer Olympic Champions in Snowboarding Women}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Farrington, Kaitlyn}}
Category:American female snowboarders
Category:Medalists at the 2014 Winter Olympics
Category:Olympic gold medalists for the United States in snowboarding
Category:Olympic medalists in snowboarding
Category:People from Hailey, Idaho
Category:Snowboarders at the 2014 Winter Olympics
Category:Sportspeople from Idaho