Danny Way
Skateboarder
In July 2005, Way, one of the top vert skateboarders around, decided to ollie over the Great Wall of China (a mountain biker who attempted the same thing previously died trying). Way nailed the jump to become the first ever to make the leap without a motorized vehicle, and then landed it three more times. He holds the records for distance (79 feet) and unaided height (23.5 feet) while skateboarding.
Travis Pastrana
Motocross Rider, Rally Racer
Pastrana won triple gold at the 2006 X Games for MotoX Best Trick, Freestyle and Rally Car. The highlight of the games was his double back flip, the first ever in competition.
Mat Hoffman
Freestyle BMX Rider
The 10-time World Vert Champion has coined 100+ new tricks that modern-day riders use and created the Bicycle Stunt Series for riders to compete and showcase their stunts.
Tanner Hall
Skier
Hall is the most influential extreme skier, commonly known as freeskiing. He has the most Winter X-Games Skiing medals with nine. Hall remains the only athlete to have a three peat at the Winter X-Games.
Bob Burnquist
Skateboarder
Burnquist is one of the better vert skateboarders of his generation and what’s unique about him is his ability to skate equally well regular-style or goofy-foot. Burnquist is the only skater to go over a loop ramp with a gap in it and he’s the only skateboarder/psycho to do a 50-50 grind on a rail hanging 1,500 feet over the Grand Canyon.
Kelly Slater
Surfer
Kelly Slater is the most successful man in his sport. He is a 9-time World Surfing Champion and both the youngest to win it (at 20 years old) and the oldest (at the age of 36).
Shaun White
Snowboarder
Known as "The Flying Tomato" with his big mop of red hair, the reigning Men’s Halfpipe Olympic Gold Medalist has become the face of the sport. White has also dominated the pavement, medaling several times in the Summer X Games in skateboarding. He is the first and only athlete to win both the Summer and Winter Dew Cup.
Tony Hawk
Skateboarder
Although he is now retired from competition, Hawk is regarded to be the best skateboarder in history. Of the 103 competitions he entered, he won 73 of them and placed second 19 times, making him the winningest skater ever. At the 1999 X Games, Hawk completed the first-ever 900 (two-and-a-half mid-air spins), even though it took him 10 tries.
Sarah Burke
Skier
Sarah Burke was the first woman to stomp down 720s, 900s and 1080s in the half-pipe. Burke is a very important figure to the Winter X-Games, too. She lobbied to include female freeski events in the winter contest series. Burke is a three-time gold medalist in the Winter X-Games and won 2007's Best Female Action Sports Athlete at the ESPY awards, the first skier to be so honored.
Shaun Palmer
Mountain Biker, Snowboarder, Skier and Motocrosser
Until Shaun White's double-gold in 2006, Palmer held the record for most gold medals in Winter X-Games history. Palmer has earned his nine gold medals in four different winter sports. He's also the oldest snowboard competitor in Winter X-Games history at 40.
