Injuries wearing on freeskier Simon Dumont
ASPEN, Colo. – Simon Dumont's emotions got the best of him. After spending more than half of his life as a professional freeskier, the 27-year-old thought he was making his final run down the halfpipe.
A torn anterior cruciate ligament, his second in the past 18 months, would derail his Olympic hopes. That much was clear.
As he competed in the final U.S. team selection event in Park City, Utah, last week, Dumont thought his pro career that began when he was 13 had ended. That might not be the case, but the freeskiing pioneer is closer to being done now.
"I wanted to just take another run for myself. I didn't want to go out on somebody else's terms," he said. "I wanted to go out there. I wanted to see the crowd. I wanted to hear those cheers that I enjoyed for so long. I wanted to see the halfpipe lit up. I'm not a very nostalgic guy, but I wanted to take it all in."
Dumont will have surgery at The Steadman Clinic in Vail, Colo., on Friday to repair his left ACL, which he tore completely in practice on Jan. 17. It will be the sixth surgery he's had there in the past 18 months, a tally which includes his right ACL as well.
Dumont's most recent ACL tear effectively ended his chance of competing for the U.S. in freeskiing's Olympic debut in Sochi.
That was a tough pill to swallow after he had helped grow the sport during the course of his career and helped lobby to get it into the Games.
"I finally felt like I could win the Olympics," he said. "Then for something like this to happen, it was just like how many more times can I keep coming back from this? It's starting to wear on me."
Dumont tore the ACL in practice, although he didn't have a singular traumatic crash. He landed low on a double cork 1260 and kind of fell over, he said, but nothing popped in his knee. His hamstring started to feel weird – a familiar sensation he experienced when he tore his other ACL – and he was checked out by a doctor.
An MRI the next morning revealed he had completely torn the ligament.
Dumont kept the news under wraps as much as possible on the chance he could still earn a discretionary spot on the U.S. team. Although it was uncomfortable, Dumont opted to compete in the final selection event on Saturday. He discussed the risks with his doctors and knew a crash could cause permanent damage to the knee.
"If I could go, it would be worth me screwing up my knee for life if I could go to the Olympics and perform at that stage," he said.
During his first time down the pipe, Dumont put down a run that included two 900s and two 720s. He coasted down his second time and finished 12th.
"I don't think my skiing ability is less than anybody else's out there," said Dumont. "The luck of the draw with the injuries and everything that happened, it didn't go my way."
David Wise, Aaron Blunck and Lyman Currier all earned spots on the team based on objective criteria. Torin Yater-Wallace, who didn't compete in the finals of any of the five qualifiers after breaking two ribs but would be a medal favorite if healthy, was named to the team this week as a discretionary pick.
"I think just making the U.S. Olympic team is a goal on itself," said Dumont, who is a mentor and idol to some of the skiers who made the team. "It's a goal in itself to make the Olympic team, and now I think we have a chance to sweep the podium to be honest."
Now Dumont looks to what is next. He will likely scale back the number of competitions he enters but could be back for the X Games. The 10-time X Games medalist said he'd like to get involved in other aspects of freeskiing, including filming and possibly broadcast work.
Dumont was in the booth for the ski superpipe elimination here Wednesday, providing analysis of runs but also easily transitioning into play-by-play calling of the runs. He says he'd love the chance to be part of the Olympics broadcast, although he doesn't know how possible that is with the Games starting in 15 days.
In addition to leading the competitive progression of the sport for more than a decade, Dumont has made an impact on his sport in another way. Each year for the past five years he has hosted the Dumont Cup in his home state of Maine.
The event allows amateur skiers a chance to compete with the top pros in the sport. The top finishers read like a who's who of freeskiing and include U.S. Olympians Nick Goepper and Gus Kenworthy.
"The iconic stature that he holds in this sport will really just be around forever," said Mike Jankowski, head coach of the U.S. Freeskiing and Snowboarding teams.
"He makes you open your eyes and watch him. He's just that kind of athlete and that respect, he's earned time and time again and it'll be around forever as a legend in the sport."
Dumont said the realization that it was time to move on was difficult, but he expects "the next phase is going to dwarf what I've done thus far." As it is, he steps back from a sport where he has left an indelible mark with a legacy that has shown as he has struggled through injuries the past couple years.
"I've overcome so many different things and I want people to know that at least I was a fighter the entire time," said Dumont. "I didn't let anything get to me and I just kept on pushing on."