Olympic snowboarder Torah Bright visits LBHS

In conjunction with the Quiksilver Pro New York Competition, Olympic snowboarder Torah Bright paid a visit to Long Beach High School to speak with physical education classes about her experiences. She told students how she developed her love for snowboarding as a 12-year-old in the mountains of Australia. Since then she has spent most of her life traveling the world to practice and compete.

Students asked her what life was like in Australia, how many times she was injured practicing this extreme sport, and what it felt like to win the Olympic Gold Medal in Calgary.

“When I crossed that green line, it was a feeling of total relief,” said Bright. “I had suffered three concussions, so I spent more time off the snow than on before the Olympics. That experience taught me how important it is to be mentally strong as well as physically strong. I am always in competition with myself. It was exciting to know that my personal best happened to be the best in the world that day.”

Bright emphasized the importance of hard work and effort it takes to be successful. When asked to put a number on it, she said that her success was 99 percent effort and 1 percent talent. At the end of her presentation, Ms. Bright stayed to chat with students and sign autographs before heading back to the festivities at the Quiksilver Pro New York Competition.