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Shannon Dunn
- Bronze medallist in the halfpipe at 1998 Olympics in Nagano, Japan
- First American to win an Olympic snowboarding medal (inaugural 1998 competition)
- 2-time U.S. Open champion (1993, 1994)
- Shannon Dunn competes primarily on the International Snowboard (ISF) tour. She rode in one FIS World Cup event during the 2000-2001 season, placing third at the Olympic test event in Park City, Utah.
- After the first run of the women's halfpipe final at the 1998 Nagano Games, Dunn had a 1.3-point lead and a chance at the gold medal. But a small slip on her second run dropped her to third place to take the bronze medal.
- Dunn's slip, likely a result of a rain-soaked halfpipe, might have prevented her from winning the gold.
- Dunn has been a pioneer for women's snowboarding. In the mid-90's, she designed a women's snowboard clothing line called Tuesday.
- Funding problems in late 1997 forced the business to an end, but Dunn feels the clothing line was pivotal in creating a market for women's snowboard apparel, which was male-dominated then.
- Dunn attended the University of Colorado for the equivalent of two academic semesters before leaving school to dedicate herself full-time to snowboarding.
- She is still interested in kinesiology and holistic medicines and may return to college after her snowboarding career is over.
- In 1979, her family moved to Steamboat Springs, Colo., where she picked up the sport with her older brother, Sean. "My first day, I fell so many times," Dunn said. "I had bruises all over my legs and couldn't move, but I liked it."
- Spends her summers surfing in San Diego with her husband, Dave Downing. They spend the winters training in Tahoe.
Dunn married fellow snowboarder Dave Downing in 1999. They met during a magazine photo shoot in Italy, and now spend time between their two California homes in San Diego and Tahoe Vista. Dunn expects the Salt Lake Games to be her swansong for snowboarding, as she and Downing intend to start a family afterward. "I've been taking snowboarding year by year. But we are thinking about babies," Dunn said.
Her bronze medal exp.at Nagano: "It's pouring, but I feel like I'm above the clouds. I just had the time of my life here. Everybody should come to the Olympics. As far as I'm concerned, if you're having the time of your life,that's winning the gold to me"
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Height: 5'2
Born: 11/26/1972
Hometown: Tahoe Vista, CA
Sport: Snowboarding
Event: Snowboarding - Halfpipe
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