Nick is a USA Olympic Gold Medal Winner, Concrete Contractor, and the Oldest U.S. Olympic Snowboarder in History
Nick Baumgartner grew up in Iron River, in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, once a major mining town. In high school, he was a hurdler and an All-American and State Champion wrestler, followed by playing football at Northern Michigan. Then, the allure of snowboarding took over. He was hooked.
After college, for years every summer, Nick went to work pouring concrete, taking on the harsh physical conditions of the construction trade in order to support his professional snowboarding dreams come winter. Unable to afford housing for those months spent training in the mountains, he lived out of a crusty van, parked anywhere he could find a spot.
Finally, he had a shot at his longtime goal. In the 2010 Olympic Games in Vancouver, he took 20th in bordercross, and 25th in 2014 in Sochi, Russia. In 2018, he placed fourth in South Korea. Then, back to slinging concrete. But the dream of one more Olympics couldn't be shaken.
In the 2022 Olympic Games in Beijing, Nick made a dire mistake that cost him a medal. He was devastated. However, the next day, in the first-ever Olympic mixed team snowboard cross, teammate Lindsey Jacobellis and Nick took the gold medal. Nick was the oldest athlete of the entire 223 member USA team, and the oldest U.S. snowboarder in history!
These days, Nick travels around the country speaking about his remarkable journey. Oh, and he's still slinging concrete.