Garrett certainly understands the pressure that comes with competing from the mountaintop of the sport.
A five-time All-Pro and seven-time Pro Bowler, he was recently named the NFL’s unanimous Defensive Player of the Year after breaking the single-season scoring record. He’s also experienced his share of defeats, having been wasted on many boring Browns teams, with only two playoff trips in his eight-year NFL tenure.
Such a perspective as part of Kim’s support system was certainly appreciated as she sought to continue her dominance of the event after winning Olympic gold in 2022 and 2018.
Kim, one of the titans of her sport, competed in the ’26 Games despite dislocating her shoulder during a training run just over a month earlier. She finished first in Wednesday’s elimination meet with a score of 90.25. However, with snow pouring down on the halfpipe Thursday night, Kim dropped out of the top spot.
She scored 88 in her best of three runs, besting South Korea’s Gaon Choi, who scored 90.25 for the final run.
These were indeed disappointing results, but nevertheless an incredible result and rather remarkable considering Kim’s injuries and the rust she had to shake off after not competing much the past year.
As for competitions with much smaller stakes within her own relationship, Kim also joined forces with Garrett.
“In our relationship, I think he’s more like a silent competitor, he’s really competitive, but he won’t say it out loud,” Kim said. “I’m like, ‘I’m going to beat you in this game right here, right now.’ We played backgammon before the final and he got me there, but we need a rematch.”
Garrett and Kim’s immediate future appears to be a game of backgammon.
After that, Garrett will begin preparing for another NFL season under Browns head coach Todd Monken, and Kim, still just 25, will have plenty of competition ahead of her and the 2030 Winter Olympics to aim for if she chooses.