Nico PORTEOUS

MUM'S SUPPORT
Considers himself quite spoiled in the support he gets from his mum. "It’s so good to have someone there when we come home from a big day of training, and we don’t feel like cooking dinner or doing our laundry. I wouldn’t know what it would be like not to have someone like that. I see other athletes in the New Zealand team travelling by themselves, doing everything for themselves, and I think ‘I just have so much respect for you.” (newsroom.co.nz)

SIBLING RIVALRY
His older brother Miguel has also represented New Zealand in freestyle skiing, with the two often competing against each other. "It never gets too competitive between us. It never gets to the point where we don't speak to each other. Just a few punches." (Info 2018)

© Data by Sports Data Warehouse

OLYMPIC WINTER GAMES
Won the gold medal in halfpipe at the Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games, the second-ever Olympic gold for New Zealand (Zoi Sadowski Synnott won the first in snowboard also in Beijing). He is also the youngest gold medallist in the event at 20 years, 88 days.

Was selected to compete at the PyeongChang 2018 Olympic Winter Games, to become the second-youngest (16 years 89 days) Winter Olympian in the nation's history (behind Alice Robinson at 16 years 76 days ).

In the men's halfpipe at PyeongChang 2018, he won the halfpipe bronze medal, becoming only the third New Zealander (and first male New Zealander) to win a medal at an Olympic Winter Games.

At age 16 years 91 days, he subsequently became New Zealand's youngest Olympic Games medallist, breaking the previous record of 16 years and 353 days set by Zoi Sadowski-Synnott earlier the same day, who had, in turn, broke the record of 17 years 100 days set by swimmer Danyon Loader at the Barcelona1992 Olympic Games.

WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP
2021 World freeski halfpipe champion beating Simon D'Artois (CAN) and Birk Irving (USA). The first New Zealander to claim a World title for Freeski.

WORLD CUP
Has four World Cup podiums, his first a second in 2018 at Secret Garden. His most recent on 10 December 2021 was second at Copper Mountain. “I’m really happy with the way I skied. I gave it my all. I’ve never done a full run of doubles before, so I was happy with that. (stuff.co.nz, 11 Dec 2021)

WINTER X GAMES
In 2021, he became the first New Zealander to win gold in the Freeski superpipe event at the X Games in Aspen. Also became the first freeskier to ever land both a right double 1620 and the combination of a right double 1620 into a left double 1620 in a halfpipe competition.

OTHER
When he was 14, he became the youngest person in the world to land the triple cork 1440.