Gretchen Bleiler
Gretchen Bleiler
Gretchen Elisabeth Bleileris an American professional halfpipe snowboarder...
ProfessionSnowboarder
Date of Birth10 April 1981
CityToledo, OH
catch definitely games olympics trying
I think the Olympics is definitely trying to catch on to what the X Games have.
neck wear
They're heavy. This is not something you want to just wear around your neck all day long.
biggest event games olympics
The Olympics is the biggest event, period. The X Games are the biggest event in snowboarding.
dream mine olympics since
The Olympics and medaling have been a dream of mine since I was a little girl.
care entire goal happens work
I get so nervous, and especially for this event. I told my coach, 'I don't want to care this much. I don't want to care this much.' But that's what happens when you work for a goal your entire life.
became hair knew ladies men salon swept week
In 2002 the men swept the podium for the U.S., and that's the day snowboarding became a sport. I went to get my hair done a week after, and there were ladies who were 60 in the salon who knew what it was. It was amazing.
amount enormous five good grand olympic relax since stress vibe
There was an enormous amount of stress during the five Olympic qualifiers. I really hadn't been able to relax since the first Grand Prix in Breckenridge. But there's a good vibe here. There's not as much stress to be honest.
best course definitely holding
I definitely won't be holding anything back. It's the X Games, so of course I want to do my best and go big.
exercise water drink
Eat lots of fresh vegetables, drink water, exercise often, and meditate daily.
believe vegetarian i-believe
I've been a vegetarian, I've been a Paleo, and now I believe in the everything-in-moderation diet.
failing imagine
Imagine if you could never fail.
eye successful scary
It took me a full year of black eyes and a bruised and battered tailbone to learn how to do a crippler in the half-pipe. It was a trick that no one else was really doing, and it was scary! But I stuck with it, and one day, it finally clicked. The crippler has been my signature trick ever since, and it's what helped me be so successful in competition.
past boundaries fulfilling
For the past fourteen years, it's been my job to push past my boundaries and do things I never thought I could do, which is why it's been such a fulfilling career.
sports effort desire
I didn't know how I was going to get to the Olympics, and in the beginning, I didn't really care. And that was the best part, because my desire exposed me to so many different sports, and in all of them, I always dedicated my best effort because I knew that's what it was going to take to become an Olympian.