Michael Michalchuk

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Michael Michalchuk (born April 20, 1977 in Victoria, British Columbia) is a Canadian professional snowboarder based in Pemberton, British Columbia. [1] Michalchuk has competed in two Winter Olympic Games in 1998 and 2002, [2] along with several world cups but has been often restricted by injury. He is also notable for being one of the first known snowboarders to complete a successful double back flip in a halfpipe competition, has several snowboarding moves named after him and has at times been regarded as arguably the most spectacular, daring half-pipe rider in Pemberton. [1]

Contents

Michalchuk stands 5'8" (1.73 m) tall and he rides with a goofy stance.

Snowboarding career

Michalchuk first entered the world professional snowboarding circuit in 1998 at the age of twenty-one after he gained qualification for the 1998 Winter Olympics as a member of the Canadian team. During the games he qualified for the finals with an equal best score but his performance dropped and he eventually finished in 8th position. [3] During the 1998 season he achieved his highest placement during that year's world cup in the United States, finishing third in the half-pipe event.

The following seasons became mostly disappointing ones for Michalchuk after he was plagued by several injuries, including blowing out his right knee and a recurring achilles tendon injury [4] and it was not until 2001 before he could again compete on a regular basis. His only glory during this time came at the end of 2000 when competing in the Nike All Conditions Gear Indoor competition he won first place after landing a "near flawless" double back flip during the quarter-pipe competition and taking home a car and $32,000 in prize money. [5]

In 2001 Michalchuk was injury free and competed in nearly a full half-pipe world cup circuit where he achieved several top-ten positions including taking a third placing during the event in Whistler.

Michalchuk gained 2002 Winter Olympic qualification after a strong performance in Alpe d'Huez, France in early 2002 but after making his second Olympics he performed poorly failing to qualify for the finals in the half-pipe event and eventually finished a disappointing twenty-seventh. [6]

Since the 2002 Olympics Michalchuk has been further hampered by injury and his performances have suffered, between 2002 and 2005 he only achieved a sole top ten placing on the world cup circuit [7] and then took the entire 2006 season off from professional touring.

Double backflip

Michalchuk became the first snowboarder to perform a double back flip in halfpipe competition during 1997 around the time when he first turned professional. [8] After performing the move he gained much media attention and would then often use the move in many professional competitions.[ citation needed ]

The Michalchuk

The Michalchuk is a pipe trick invented by Michael Michalchuk in the late 1990s and has emerged as his most lasting legacy in modern snowboarding. It's a wildcat-style back flip off the heelside wall of a half-pipe or quarter-pipe. [9]

Footnotes

  1. 1 2 CANOE 2002 Games – Team Canada – Mike Michalchuk
  2. ↑ Evans, Hilary; Gjerde, Arild; Heijmans, Jeroen; Mallon, Bill; et al. "Mike Michalchuk Olympic Results". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on 17 April 2020. Retrieved 9 April 2020.
  3. ↑ MountainZone.com | Olympic Halfpipe Snowboarding
  4. ↑ "Athlete Profile - Michael Michalchuk". www.theglobeandmail.com. Archived from the original on 2007-09-30.
  5. ↑ Boarder Lines: Mike Michalchuk on snowboard.mountainzone.com
  6. ↑ BBC SPORT | Winter Olympics 2002 | Snowboarding | French flavour hits snowboarding
  7. ↑ "FIS-Ski - biographie". Archived from the original on 2007-09-30. Retrieved 2007-05-05.
  8. ↑ Method Snowboard Magazine: Flashback: Mike Michalchuk Archived 2007-09-28 at the Wayback Machine
  9. ↑ "🎖️ FastLoto Azərbaycan⚡ Populyar onlayn kazino oyunu".

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