Christian Freeskier Who Wants to Be a Pastor, Wins Sport's First Olympic Gold Medal
American David Wise has became the first Olympic gold medalist in the history of the sport of men's freestyle skiing halfpipe.
Wise, 23, scored 92 out of 100 in his first round of the finals, a number which put him atop the podium on Tuesday. In his second round, Wise only earned a 3.4 after falling, which gave him the distinction of scoring the event's highest and lowest scores.
"I think free skiing really rose to the occasion and put on a good show in spite of the conditions," Wise told NBC's The Today Show on Wednesday morning about his performance, addressing the rain, fog and snow that the athletes were confronted with while competing on Tuesday.
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In a sport known for its at times brash and laid-back athletes, Wise, who is a Christian, married, and a father of a two-year-old, stands out. He and his wife Alexandra run the youth group at their church and the skier said he could even see himself as "a pastor of a church at some point."
"If that's the way it works out, or if that's God's plan for my life, then that's something I'd be totally okay with, but if not, then I'll do whatever else comes," he told NBC before the Olympics.
For Wise, his faith is an important part of how he sees himself as a competitor and athlete.
"For me, if you're going to go so far as to believe something, then it really should be a big part of whom you are. So, whenever I'm out there skiing, I try to be the same person as a skier as I am in church on Sundays," he said. "I try to be the same in everything that I do. I really just feel blessed and fortunate to be out there being a part of such a cool sport."
Wise added that his dream is to "take what I love to do and inspire other people...Show people that the world is beautiful."
"Yeah, there's ugliness mixed in, but God created us all with the potential of enjoying this place," he added.
Despite being in a different stage of life than many of his teammates, Wise said he was still able to connect with them.
"Personality-wise, I fit in with those guys pretty well, because I like to go fast and fly high, but for me, family is important, and having them there, supporting me makes me ski better," he told NBC on Wednesday. "It is different maybe to the culture, but kind of what I'm out there doing is showing that it's totally cool. It's acceptable in its own right."
Aaron Blunck, Wise's 17-year-old teammate, only had warm words for Wise.
"Dave is, right now, on top of the sport. He's the best. He's proven it multiple times," Blunck said. "He comes out in any condition and has amazing fun. He's the dad out of the group. So, no matter what he does, we're proud of him."
Wise won his first national title in freestyle ski halfpipe at 15 and turned pro three years later at age 18. This is freestyle skiing halfpipe's inaugural Olympics.
