Snowboarder Hailey Langland of San Clemente qualified for the U.S. Olympic team Saturday, thanks to a third-place finish at the Toyota U.S. Grand Prix at Mammoth Mountain.
“I didn’t think it was possible to go to the Olympics until last year,” the 17-year-old Langland said. “I had invitations to these big contests like X Games and that was cool. But my coaches told me the Olympics were a possibility and here I am.”
Langland began snowboarding when she was 5 years old. Her father, Geoff, was a sponsored rider who wanted his children to have the opportunity to share his love for the sport.
Langland began competing when she was 7 years old and by 13 she was on the athlete list at the Mammoth Mountain stop of the Revolution Tour, where she placed seventh.
Langland won the big air gold medal in the 2017 X Games when she was the youngest competitor.
–City News Service