Athlete Bios
Snowboarding
Teter spearheads humanitarian projects
Last Updated: Wednesday, February 10, 2010 | 10:21 AM ET
New York Times for CBC Sports
Hannah Teter competes during the halfpipe portion of the 2010 U.S. Snowboarding Grand Prix on January 8, 2010. (Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images)The gold-medal winner in the women's halfpipe in Turin, Hannah Teter has established herself as one of the icons of the sport. The question is whether she remains a strong enough competitor to be regarded as a medal favourite in Vancouver.
Teter, 23, was raised in Vermont in a large family of successful snowboarders. Lately, however, she's become known for her work away from the halfpipe.
After her Olympics victory, Teter began a charity called Hannah's Gold to support clean-water projects in Africa and to help buy land for AIDS victims there. The project is funded by money raised selling Vermont maple syrup. The project's mandate is to "sweeten the world one bottle at a time."
She has become a vocal supporter for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, and recently shot a save-the-seals advertisement.
Ben & Jerry's recently named a flavour after her: Maple Blondie, with light brownie pieces and caramel swirled with maple ice cream.
But Teter's wide-ranging interests, which also include surfing and skateboarding, have taken a toll on her results as a snowboarder. Most of Teter's success in major competitions came between 2004 and 2006.
Teter, however, announced her return with a third-place finish at the 2009 X games.
She pulled out of the first Olympic qualifying event at Copper Mountain, Colo., in December, after injuring her right shoulder during warmups. The injury did not occur on a fall, but Teter felt her shoulder pop out of joint while twisting her body on a spin. It is not considered serious, but it has become persistent enough over the past few years to be worrisome.
