At a Glance
- Red Gerard says slopestyle riders treat each other as friends, not rivals
- The 25-year-old became the youngest snowboarding gold medalist in Olympic history at 17
- He started snowboarding at age 2 after watching his brothers
- Why it matters: His perspective challenges the cut-throat narrative often tied to elite competition
Red Gerard doesn’t view his fellow Olympic snowboarders as opponents. The 25-year-old U.S. slopestyle rider told News Of Losangeles that the tight-knit community on the circuit feels more like a group of friends sharing a passion than a pack of rivals chasing medals.
Inside the Slopestyle Brotherhood
“One of the biggest misunderstood things is, I think, a lot of people think a lot of us clash out there,” Gerard tells News Of Losangeles. “I can’t speak for halfpipe, but I can speak for slopestyle. That doesn’t really happen for us a lot there. That’s like one of the coolest things, and I think it’s one of the most unique things.”
Gerard says the atmosphere is “so unorthodox compared to any other action sports.” Instead of icy stares and guarded strategies, riders swap tips, cheer each other on, and celebrate one another’s breakthroughs. That culture, he argues, sets slopestyle apart from traditional head-to-head events.
From Toddler to Trailblazer
Gerard’s journey began at age 2, when he first strapped into a board after watching his older brothers ride. The memory is so distant he can’t recall those initial slides.
“I don’t even really have first memories on a snowboard,” he says, laughing. “It was just like, I was just snowboarding [one day].”
Growing up in Rocky River, Ohio, as one of seven siblings, Gerard thrived on camaraderie. The family dynamic translated naturally to the hill, where he found comfort riding alongside friends and feeding off collective energy.
Team USA’s Training Bond
Modern preparation camps in Europe double as bonding sessions. Gerard says the U.S. squad turns nerve-wracking practice runs into shared adventures.
“I find a lot of inspiration from just riding with my other teammates on Team USA,” he explains. “I think we both do a really good job – in the off season when we’re at these training camps in Europe – at kind of pushing each other and going back and forth. And we turn the scary times into almost like, fun times … We feed off each other.”
That mutual support, he believes, raises everyone’s level. When one rider lands a new trick, the rest rush to dissect the technique and attempt their own versions, accelerating progression across the group.
Veteran Status at 25
Gerard laughs at now being labeled a veteran. The tag arrived quickly: at the 2018 Pyeongchang Games he became both the youngest snowboarding gold medalist in Olympic history and the youngest Winter Olympian to top the podium since 1928.
“I still feel young and I still feel really, really healthy,” he says. “But it has been really cool being on Team USA since I was 13 or whatever … and [now] being one of the older athletes, being able to offer some wisdom to the younger athletes.”
The role reversal hasn’t dampened his enthusiasm. If anything, mentoring freshens his perspective, reminding him why he fell in love with the sport.
Chasing Another Gold in 2026
With the 2026 Winter Olympics approaching, Gerard plans to keep his routine unchanged. He deliberately downplays the size and scope of the Games to maintain focus.
“I just try to tell myself when the Olympics are coming around, it’s the same as all the other competitions,” he says. “I mean, yeah, it’s different. It’s on a bigger scale, and a lot more people watching and all that. But when it actually comes down to the snowboarding, it’s the same exact thing. So, if you can kind of put your blinders on and just worry about what you got to do and treat it the same as you have your whole life, that’s what I always try to do.”
He credits that mindset for his past success and sees no reason to adjust a winning formula.
The Freedom Philosophy
Gerard embraces snowboarding’s open-ended nature. “There’s no right or wrong way to do it,” he insists. Whether competitors favor technical rail combos or massive jump rotations, creativity carries equal weight to difficulty.
That philosophy fuels the friendly vibe. Because style is subjective, riders share ideas rather than hoard them, confident that personal expression will differentiate their runs when judging begins.
Key Takeaways
- Red Gerard emphasizes friendship over rivalry in Olympic slopestyle snowboarding
- He began riding at age 2 and joined Team USA at 13
- The 2018 gold medalist now mentors younger teammates while eyeing the 2026 Games
- Gerard treats Olympic contests like any other event to stay mentally grounded
