Hunter Hess (born October 1, 1998) is an American freestyle skier. == Early life == Hess attended Summit High School in Bend, Oregon where he played soccer. He competed in the USASA Enter the Dragon competition at Mt. Bachelor and eventually joined the Mt. Bachelor Sports Education Foundation (MBSEF) at nine years old. == Career == During the 2018–19 FIS Freestyle Ski World Cup, Hess earned his first FIS Freestyle Ski World Cup podium finish on December 22, 2018, finishing in third place. A few months before the Olympic qualifiers, Hess crashed while training, tearing his medial collateral ligament (MCL), and failed to qualify for the 2022 Winter Olympics. He finished the 2023–24 FIS Freestyle Ski World Cup with three podium finishes, and in second place in the overall standings with 265 points, finishing behind teammate Alex Ferreira. In January 2024, Hess competed at the Winter X Games in Aspen and won a bronze medal in the SuperPipe event with a score of 92 on his third and final run to edge three-time Olympic medalist Nick Goepper. In January 2025, he again competed at the Winter X Games in Aspen and won a bronze medal in the SuperPipe event with a score of 85.66. Hess represented the United States at the 2025 FIS Freestyle Ski World Championships in the halfpipe event and finished in fifth place with a score of 89.75. During the 2025–26 FIS Freestyle Ski World Cup season opener on December 12, 2025, he finished in third place with a score of 86.25. The next week, on December 20, 2025, he finished in second place with a score of 89.00. Hess qualified for his first Winter Olympics in 2026. At a press conference, he stated that he had "mixed feelings" about representing the United States due to domestic policies of the second Trump administration. This caused backlash among conservative politicians, including President Donald Trump who called Hess a "real loser". == References == == External links == Hunter Hess at the International Ski and Snowboard Federation Hunter Hess at U.S. Ski & Snowboard Hunter Hess at Team USA Hunter Hess at the X Games Hunter Hess at Milano Cortina 2026 Hunter Hess at InterSportStats Hunter Hess on Instagram