VERMONT SPORTS HALL OF FAME

(Photo Credit: USOC)

West Dover

Snowboarding

Inducted 2023

A five-time Olympian, a three-time Olympic medalist and a world champion in snowboarding, Kelly Clark retired as one of the world’s most accomplished female competitors in her top event, the half-pipe.

She competed in five straight Olympics starting in 2002, never finishing lower than fourth, and captured three half-pipe medals. She earned gold in 2002 in Salt Lake City and bronze medals in Vancouver in 2010 and 2014 in Sochi. She was fourth in both Torino in 2006 and in her final Olympic appearance in 2018 at PyeongChang. 

Clark burst on the international scene in 2001 finishing 10th in the FIS half-pipe World Cup Standings. In addition to her Olympic success, she was a three-time FIS World Cup Standings Champion and twice finished second. 

She appeared 19 consecutive ESPN’s Winter X Games, the longest streak in the event’s history, winning the most-ever X Games medals for a female. She won nine golds and six silvers in the X Games SuperPipe. And in 2011, became the first woman to land a 1080-degree spin in competition.

Clark was twice honored by ESPN at its ESPY Awards with the 2002 Action Sport Athlete of the Year Award and the 2015 Best Female Action Sports Athlete Award.

She created the non-profit Kelly Clark Foundation in 2010 that provides youths with the resources and opportunities they need to achieve their highest potential through snowboarding. The foundation has awarded over $100,000 in scholarships in an effort to eliminate financial barriers for talented young athletes across the country.