Hirano Ayumu: I want to accomplish more than Shaun White

Hirano Ayumu is alone in so many ways.

For starters, the versatile Japanese snowboarder and skateboarder is the only athlete that competed in all three of the consecutive Olympic Games in East Asia between 2018 and 2022.

On the snow, he landed the first triple cork in halfpipe competition history in 2021.

At Beijing 2022, the 23-year-old became the first Japanese athlete in history to win snowboard Olympic gold, and also the first athlete of his nation to win medals at three straight Winter Games.

While all of these successes were accompanied with fame and adulation, his path to the top was a lonely one.

Hirano is prone to overthinking and over training, such is his dedication to perfection.

In a candid interview with Olympics.com, the three-time Olympic medallist reveals how he develops his unique style of snowboarding tricks, the mindset he employs to stay ahead of competition, and why he never compares himself to Shaun White.

READ: Hirano Ayumu: Skateboard technique was secret "weapon" on journey to halfpipe gold

Olympic Channel: How did it feel to win your first Olympic gold medal at Beijing 2022?

Hirano Ayumu: I competed in skateboarding at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, so I only had six months to get the points and qualify for the (Beijing 2022) Olympics, and to prepare for the snowboard event. I kept pushing myself to the limits. It was a difficult time that I had never experienced before.

After the disappointment of the two silver medals (at Sochi 2014 and PyeongChang 2019), I am now satisfied and have achieved what I wanted to do. I feel differently (from the past) and still haven't got used to it. It's a bit weird. The gold medal has always been my goal, and I have fulfilled my childhood dream.

OC: Could you explain