“They were shotgunning beers at like 8:30 in the morning,” the teen gold medalist said.
Snowboarding slopestyle gold medalist and teenage Olympic breakout Red Gerard joined Jimmy Kimmel on Tuesday night to talk about his big win in Pyeongchang.
“I’m hyped, it’s been awesome,” the teen phenom told Kimmel. He had just previously arrived back stateside from Pyeongchang, where he will return later this week to compete in the snowboarding big air competition.
Gerard, who sported his gold medal and a large hat, explained how he got his shiny new hardware through airport security. “I just put it in the backpack and nothing happened. I just walked right through,” the Olympian said. “My brother got hassled like crazy, though,” he added.
Gerard, 17, scored a surprise gold medal victory in the snowboarding slopestyle competition on Saturday, becoming the first athlete born in the 2000s to win the gold. He quickly became a breakout for his excited reaction to the win and his large family, who were on hand to celebrate his big win.
The young snowboarder’s brother was not the only family member to be in South Korea for his historic win, however, as Gerard explained 18 of his kin also made the trek. “They were shotgunning beers at like 8:30 in the morning,” Gerard explained of his family the day of his big event.
As for his nerves the night before the competition, Gerard said he was unphased by the big stage: “Me and my buddy were watching Netflix, Brooklyn Nine Nine. I was really relaxed. I’m pretty good with nerves before a contest.”
While Gerard has returned stateside for the week, most of his family is still in Pyeongchang. “I keep opening up my phone and Snapchat and they’re just chugging Sake,” the Olympian told Kimmel.
