American snowboarder Nick Baumgartner was downright heartbroken after his quarterfinal elimination in snowboard cross at the 2022 Winter Olympics.
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"I don't think people know how much you put into this," Baumgartner said, choking back tears. "I put so much time and effort and then one little mistake and it's gone."
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At 40-years-old, the Michigan-native knows his time on the Olympic stage is running out. This is his fourth Winter Olympic appearance in a sport as rough as anything on snow.
"I'm running out of chances," he said. "I got so much support back home and I feel like I let them down. This one stinks. This one hurts. I just feel bad."
When asked about his plans going forward, he said "I ain't stopping on this. I've gotta do something better to end with."
Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics
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Baumgartner is adding himself to an ever-growing list of older athletes still mixing it up in a young person's sport. Three of the riders in the men's heat are barely older than his 17-year-old son Landon, who is in high school.
Baumgartner, a staple of the U.S. team since 2005, has had two World Cup podiums over the last three months. Among his 18 big-contest podiums is a Winter X Games gold he won in 2011
