Russian · White Salmon, Washington, USA · Born 23 August 1986American-born Russian snowboarder who swept both parallel alpine gold medals at the 2014 Sochi Olympics after switching nationalities when the U.S. cut funding for his discipline.
Victor Ivan Wild was born on 23 August 1986 in White Salmon, Washington, and initially competed for the United States in parallel alpine snowboarding, a discipline that receives comparatively little support or attention in American snowboarding compared to halfpipe, slopestyle, and snowboard cross. After the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association eliminated its alpine snowboarding program following the 2010 Vancouver Olympics, Wild found himself with no funding and no path forward in his home country. Wild married Russian snowboarder Alena Zavarzina in 2011 and gained Russian citizenship, joining a federation that invested heavily in the discipline. The move transformed his career: having ranked ninth in the world the previous season, Wild swept both the parallel giant slalom and the parallel slalom at the 2014 Sochi Olympics, becoming the first snowboarder ever to win two medals at the same Winter Games. He won the parallel slalom by a mere 0.11 seconds over Slovenia's Zan Kosir after stunning four-time world champion Benjamin Karl of Austria in the semifinal. He received over $400,000 in bonuses from the Russian government along with a car and the Order For Merit to the Fatherland, presented by President Vladimir Putin. Wild's results declined in the years that followed; he exited early at Pyeongchang 2018 while competing under the neutral Olympic Athletes from Russia banner amid the country's doping sanctions, delivering a lengthy, pointed critique of Olympic politics afterward. He returned to the podium at the 2022 Beijing Olympics with bronze in parallel giant slalom before retiring from competition.
Sweeping both parallel alpine snowboarding gold medals at the 2014 Sochi Olympics after switching from the United States to Russia
How They Played
Technically sharp parallel alpine racer known for aggressive gate carving and peaking under maximum pressure in head-to-head elimination formats
Lasting Impact
Remembered for one of the most unlikely nationality-switch stories in Winter Olympics history, turning a career stalled by lack of funding into double Olympic gold
Career Honours
- 2x Olympic Gold Medalist (2014 Parallel Slalom and Parallel Giant Slalom)
- First snowboarder ever to win two medals at the same Winter Olympics
- 2022 Olympic Bronze Medalist, Parallel Giant Slalom
- 2013 World Championship Bronze Medalist, Parallel Giant Slalom
Russian Athletes