Canadian snowboarder Mark McMorris confident he'll return from head injury for men's slopestyle

Mark McMorris is sounding more optimistic about competing at his fourth Winter Olympics just two days after a hitting his head during a crash in training took him out of the men's big air event on Thursday in Italy.

The Regina native remains hopeful of being a participant in the slopestyle event, set to begin Feb. 16 at Livigno Snow Park.

"Getting better day by day, hour by hour,” McMorris, 32, said Friday on Instagram. “There is a really good chance I will get [medically] cleared to compete in slopestyle and that’s all I need to keep pushing my hardest.”

McMorris, who was taken to hospital after the incident and released soon after, added he was thankful for the love and support from Canadians.

“I haven’t been on my phone much but the messages do not go unnoticed,” he said. “Thank you, and I will keep you updated.”

Brendan Matthews, Canada Snowboard's vice-president of business development and partnerships, called McMorris’s crash a "freak accident," saying the athlete landed the trick he was attempting when it happened. He caught some loose snow with his heel edge and had a "hard fall."

Each of McMorris's three Olympic bronze medals have been earned in slopestyle: 2014 (Sochi, Russia), 2018 (Pyeongchang, South Korea) and 2022 (Beijing).