3x Olympic Medalist Goepper Retires from Freeskiing

Three-time Olympic medalist Nick Goepper announced that he is retiring from competitive freeskiing.

“With great excitement and emotion I’d like to announce my retirement from full time competition,” posted Goepper, age 28, on Instagram. “Starting today would have been my 12th @xgames Aspen. Reminiscing over the last 10+ years of spinnin’ to win it has truly been the biggest blessing what this sport has given me. I could never express enough appreciation for the support of my sponsors, family, friends, coaches, and countless other supporters.”

Goepper hails from an unconventional spot for a professional skier—a small ski hill in Indiana called Perfect North Slopes, far from the mountains where many of his compatriots grew up, where he sold candy bars to pay for ski passes.

Goepper’s first World Cup podium came in 2013, and he dominated the field for the greater part of the next decade. He competed in three Olympic Games—Sochi 2014, PyeongChang 2018 and Beijing 2022—and medaled in all three of them. He won a silver in slopestyle in Sochi, sweeping the podium with teammates Joss Christensen and Gus Kenworthy, a silver in slopestyle in PyeongChang and a bronze in slopestyle in Beijing, standing on the podium with teammate Alex Hall. He also won two medals in the FIS World Championships: a bronze in 2013 in Voss-Myrkdalen, Norway and another bronze in 2019 in Park City.

Since the 2022 Olympics, Goepper has begun commentating at elite freeski and snowboard events, such as the Toyota U.S. Grand Prix at Copper Mountain in December. He also competed at the World Skate Games 2022 in November, where he scored a top 10 finish in inline skating.

Congratulatory messages poured into Goepper’s announcement—from U.S. Ski & Snowboard Team teammates to competitors from other countries to sponsors, meme accounts and more.

“With great pleasure I can’t wait to watch the next generation take over and put freeskiing on a global stage,” Goepper continued. “What’s next? Who knows. I’ll still be skiing, I’ll still be around.”