As Olympic snowboarder Max Parrot flies through the air, twisting his body into a series of well-orchestrated flips and turns, you’d never know that just three years ago he was in the hospital receiving chemotherapy.
In December 2018, Max was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma, a cancer that develops near the heart and lungs. The horrible news came just a few months after Max won his first Olympic medal, a silver, at the Pyeongchang Games in South Korea.
Max has been snowboarding since he was 9 years old, and he’s made history on multiple occasions. In addition to his Olympic silver, he has also won six gold medals at the Winter X Games and two gold medals at the Winter X Games Europe. Many consider him to be the best slopestyle snowboarder in the world.
Then, the diagnosis. Max suddenly went from his physical prime to the lowest low he’d ever experienced. He’d been at the top of his game before his diagnosis, but 12 rounds of chemotherapy left him utterly drained and weaker than ever.
“The last time I was at the Olympics, in Pyeongchang, I got a silver medal, and then I had to go through cancer,” he said. “It was a nightmare – it’s so hard to describe what I’ve been through.”
Max powered through his cancer treatments like the true champion he is! In 2019, he announced he was cancer-free and returning to competition. He proved he was up for the task by winning a gold medal at the 2019 X Games in Oslo, followed by earning a spot on the Canadian Olympics team.
In Beijing, China, Max did not come to play! He scored an incredible 90.96 in the men’s snowboard slopestyle event, earning Canada’s first gold of the 2022 games!
“This is actually so incredibly special,”Max said after his big win. “It’s the biggest run I’ve ever done in my entire career. Everything was so clean; I’m just so proud of myself to take gold with that run.â€
He went on to say that he was “on a cloud” after seeing his score and realizing he’d earned the top spot on the podium. He couldn’t help but reflect on all he’s gone through to get where he is today, and he’s incredibly proud and grateful.
“A lot of things had happened, with my diagnosis with cancer, beating cancer, and then with [the COVID-19 pandemic], it was harder to train,”he said. “So many challenges in the [past few years], but to be out here with the gold means so much.â€
“You have no cardio, you have no energy, you have no muscles. To be back out here, at the Olympics, on a podium again but with a gold medal, it feels amazing,” Max said. “I laid down the best run of my entire life. I’m so proud of every feature, how I was able to clear them, and I’m really stoked with my score.”
We’re proud of you too, Max! Way to show cancer who’s boss! Share this story to wish him luck in his next competition, the big sky event on February 14 and 15.
Want to be happier in just 5 minutes a day? Sign up for Morning Smile and join over 455,000+ people who start each day with good news.