Ross Rebagliati
Rebagliati in 2006
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July 14, 1971 Vancouver, British Columbia |
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Medal record
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Ross Rebagliati (born July 14, 1971) is a Canadian professional snowboarder, Olympic Gold Medal Winner and founder of Ross' Gold, a Canadian medical cannabis branding company.
Rebagliati was born in Vancouver, British Columbia. After turning pro in 1991, he was the first ever to win an Olympic gold medal for Men's Snowboarding at the 1998 Winter Olympics. After winning the gold, he was found to have Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) in his circulatory system following a blood test and he was automatically disqualified. This decision was eventually overturned, largely on the basis that marijuana was not on the list of banned substances, and Rebagliati was given back the medal. The next day he appeared on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno and became an instant icon to many globally. THC has since been listed by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) as a banned substance. In 2013 however, WADA amended its rules on cannabis, raising the threshold for a positive test from 15 nanograms per milliliter to 150 ng/ml. In 1998 at the Nagano Games, Rebagliati recorded a level of 17.8 ng/ml, and argued the test resulted from second-hand smoke, which he still says. Ben Nichols, a spokesperson for WADA, said the raising of the threshold is meant to catch only athletes who smoke during the period of a competition. The drug isn't prohibited out of competition.
Since that day, Ross has become a cultural phenomenon in the marijuana world and is an outspoken advocate of medical cannabis. Mr. Rebagliati has been involved in multimillion-dollar real estate development projects throughout British Columbia, as well as residential construction. Rebagliati was the subject of full-page coverage in the July 14, 2008 edition of Sports Illustrated, which profiled his life since his Olympic win.
Ross has been able to take his love of the great sport to reach out to the youth in the community. As a member of the Make-a-Wish Foundation, Ross helped grant wishes of children as far away as Florida. Ross has worked with other charities including the Whistler Rotary Club, BC Sports Hall of Fame, Big Bothers of Greater Vancouver, Kids Help Phone and The Whistler Blackcomb Foundation.
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