How Kelly Clark overcame depression to become America's best snowboarder

U.S. snowboarder Kelly Clark won gold in the halfpipe competition in Salt Lake City in 2002, back when she was only 18. Twelve years later, at 30, she's the most decorated athlete in her sport, and still going strong. She's into the final in the halfpipe competition in Sochi, and a favorite to add another gold medal to her collection. 

Shaun White gets most of the press, but Clark is the most decorated snowboarder on the American side. But you wouldn't know by talking with her. "You're never going to be the best," Clark told Thrive Sports. "I've had a great career, but I'll never arrive and be complete. And I love that." 

"I never had a plan that I’d be at the height of my career when I was 30 years old. That’s not how I saw it going."

Struggles with depression

It hasn't always been smooth sailing for Clark, despite her incredible career accomplishments. After winning gold in 2002, she felt, as she put it, empty inside. She reached a low point a couple of years later, considering suicide, until she found God. It happened at an event, after she'd qualified for yet another final. 

Clark saw a girl crying after falling on a run. She was consoled by another girl, who said, "It's all right. God still loves you." 

Clark was struck by the comment. So much so that she went back to her hotel room and found her bible. Not knowing where to begin, she sought out the girl who consoled the disappointed snowboarder on the course, and asked her for guidance. She's never looked back. 

Up until that day, Clark "had it all," but felt like she "had nothing." 

She committed herself to Christianity, and it helped her through a very difficult fourth-place finish in Torino in the halfpipe in 2006. 

"I learned that there is a big difference between having potential and being prepared," Clark said. "I had potential, sure. But I wasn’t as prepared, and I got my heart broken as a result."

Clark credits her identity outside of snowboarding and her faith in God for getting her through. She won a bronze medal in Vancouver in the halfpipe, even though she fell on her first run. She's been through it all at the Olympics, but she won't let those experiences define her. 

Clark knows there are more important things than snowboarding. She's established the Kelly Clark Foundation, focused on empowering youth through sports like snowboarding, and understands that finishing in first isn't what life's all about. 

At the same time, she's never been more in love with the sport she's dedicated her life to. 

"I hold the core belief that nothing is impossible," Clark said. "That is stemmed from my relationship with God. That’s how I experience him and know him. That’s what inspires me. I don’t know what’s possible to do on a snowboard, and I would like to find out."

We're looking forward to finding out, as well.