Shaun White says Beijing Olympics will be final competition

By JAKE SEINER
AP Sports Writer

BEIJING (AP) — Three-time snowboarding gold medalist Shaun White made it clear that the Beijing Games won’t just be his final Olympics. The 35-year-old American plans to retire from the sport he put on the international map after the halfpipe medal round next week. White has been a transcendent force for snowboarding and its most recognizable face for nearly two decades. And not just because of the mop of red hair that inspired his nickname. Those locks have since been chopped and White is now an elder statesman for the sport. He is participating in his fifth Olympics after a difficult and injury-marred season.