Pierre Vaultier Wiki: Snowboarder, Net Worth, Gold Medal & Facts To Know

Pierre Vaultier was born in 1987. He is a French two-time Olympic Gold Champion, and one-time World Gold Champion snowboarder who specializes in snowboard cross. The athlete serves in the Army and is a student too. He studies Geography at the University of Grenoble, France. His wife's name is Kadri and they have a daughter named Kimi and son Robi. Vaultier can speak English and French languages. He trained in the club Serre Chevalier in France under coach Kevin Strucl who is a national coach and Philippe Giraud from France. Vaultier made his World Cup Debut - 2005 in Valle Nevado, Chile.. He tore the anterior cruciate ligament [ACL] in his knee in December 2013. He returned to competition two months later. He also once shattered his talus [ankle bone] in a crash in March 2012. He began training on snow again in November 2012. In December 2008, he injured his spine while training in Serre Chevalier, France. He required surgery and missed the rest of the season. Vaultier began skiing at age two and then later switched to snowboard three years later at the Serre Chevalier resort in France. He states the reason of snowboarding as, "Ever since I was young snowboarding has been an enriching, mind-opening experience, thanks to the values and limits of the sport." He believes in the philosophy that one must, "Always follow your dream." Pierre Vaultier has got many Olympic Gold medals. He won gold in snowboard cross at the 2014 Olympic Winter Games in Sochi, despite competing with a torn anterior cruciate ligament [ACL]. He sustained the injury in December 2013, and raced with a knee brace. "I felt quite relaxed because I was not supposed to be here. I was racing with no pressure, and it brought me to the bottom in first place." He considers mental preparation an important aspect of the sport. Since 2007 he has worked with mental coach Philippe Giraud. "[Mental preparation] is something important. Philippe shows me how to open doors so I can push and open them. He understands my fears and he reshapes them." He said in his athlete profile.

Vaultier started snowboarding at the age of six at Serre Chevalier which is one of the major French ski resorts located in the southern part of the Alps. He debuted competition for the first time in 1997. He participated in the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turino and at the X Games in 2007. On March 13, 2008, he won the crystal globe in snowboarding by finishing second in the final round of the 2007–08 FIS Snowboard World CupWorld Cup at Chiesa in Valmalenco. 2009 season was marked by his injury and later in 2010, he achieved victory again at the 2010 World Cup in Chapelco. Later he also won gold at the Telluride, Veysonnaz and Quebec. He got the second place at Bad Gastein. He became a favorite at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver. Vaultier won the gold medal in the snowboard cross at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi which was just two months after he tore his anterior cruciate ligament. After surviving a crash in the semifinals of the 2018 Olympic Winter Games in Pyeongchang, Vaultier won gold again. This was his second gold medal in the Olympic snowboard cross.

The net worth of the Olympian is currently under review.

The Olympic Gold Champion, Pierre Vaultier from France added another snowboard cross gold medal to his victories at the 2018 Olympic Winter Games in Pyeongchang. The first one was won in 2014 Sochi Olympics. After the crash, the Frenchman, however, was the first to get up and qualified in third place. There was more drama and more disappointing collisions this year but Vaultier gave a tough fight and finally won. Vaultier admitted to feeling emotional afterwards. He said, winning gold for a second time eclipsed the feeling he experienced at Sochi 2014. “The first one was incredible, he said.“I came back from injury two months before the Games and it meant a lot.I can’t even say why, but this one means even more. It’s a great second gold medal. I’m having trouble saying how I feel. I'm on the verge of tears because I’ve got over the line. These are huge emotions.” On his lucky winning he said, “I have a guardian angel,” he said.“In the semi-final, when I crashed with silver medallist Jarryd Hughes, I stepped out of my binding to push on top of the kicker and finished in third place. That was so sick. A piece of bad luck turned into an unexpected piece of good luck. My coach said to me: 'Nothing else can happen to you now. You smash the final and no one will be able to take anything away from you.' And that’s just what happened.”

Pierre Vaultier is available on his official Instagram page @pierrevaultier. He uploads his random photos as well as photos from his competitions and events on his Instagram page.