Two-time Canadian Olympic bronze medallist Mark McMorris of Regina, Saskatchewan has tested positive for coronavirus according to the Canadian Press on Monday. McMorris tested positive while in California and preparing for the 2021 Winter X Games in Aspen, Colorado, which he will now miss.
The Winter X Games are to start on Friday, and go from January 29 to 31. In his career, McMorris has won 20 Winter X Games medals, a record for the most Winter X Games medals of all-time according to NBC Sports. This is also the first time McMorris will have missed the Winter X Games.
The American state of California has been hammered by coronavirus. There have been 3,199,895 cases of coronavirus in the state, and 37,527 deaths. California has the most cases of coronavirus, and the second most fatalities. Only New York at 42,605 deaths has had more fatalities than California.
Two unnamed members of the Canadian snowboarding team tested positive for coronavirus on January 19 before a snowboarding World Cup in Laax, Switzerland. As a result, none of the Canadian snowboarders, including McMorris, competed.
McMorris won both of his Olympic medals in men’s slopestyle snowboarding. The first came at the 2014 Olympic Winter Games in Sochi, and the second came at the 2018 Olympic Winter Games in Pyeongchang. Even at 27 years of age, McMorris is considered a medal contender for Canada in slopestyle snowboarding and big air snowboarding at the 2022 Olympic Winter Games in Beijing.
