Brazilian snowboarder Pat Burgener’s Olympic journey spans the mountains to music

MILAN (AP) — Brazilian snowboarder Pat Burgener feels complete when he combines his love of the halfpipe with his passion for music.

The 31-year-old competed for Switzerland, where he was born and raised, in the 2018 Pyeongchang Games as well as the 2022 Beijing Olympics. His mother was born in Lebanon but grew up in Brazil, and Burgener has wanted to join their squad since the country hosted the all-Brazil FIFA Club World Championship in 2000. 

On Tuesday, he performed for the Brazil House in Milan, a gathering spot organized by its Olympic committee. Some 50 revelers danced and clapped along to the beat as he juggled a guitar with his hands, a harmonica with his mouth and drum pedals with his bare feet.

“This year I fell in love with Brazil and it made me do crazy things,” he said onstage to the audience’s applause.

Encouraged by his parents since he was 5 years old, he can play the piano, guitar, ukulele, harmonica, trumpet, flute and the four-string cavaquinho. He was later diagnosed with ADHD and said music helped him focus. 

“I realized that a big part of society doesn’t want you to do too many things because we’re kind of focused on trying to make one thing really well, which for some people works,” he told The Associated Press before Tuesday’s show. “But for me, like, it’s what I need. I felt it. It was like a balance of life between snowboarding, music.”

Since first performing at 18 with his brother, he knew he’d be a musician. He’s since recorded dozens of songs, and his first single in Portuguese was released just as the Games began. He splits his time between touring from April to December, typically around 80 shows, and then switches to the snowboard season.

Burgener’s debut with the Brazilian team this year coincided with that of Alpine ski racer Lucas Pinheiro Braathen, whose gold medal Saturday earned South America its first-ever medal in a Winter Olympics. Pinheiro Braathen until 2023 competed for Norway, switching to Brazil last season and adding his mother’s surname.

For Burgener, his outcome did not match his teammate’s. His Olympic journey ended in Livigno, Italy, on Feb. 11. His 14th place finish in the men’s halfpipe qualifying event meant he was not able to move on to the final. 

Still, he knows he’ll translate the experience into music.

“It’s like that feeling where like, ‘wow, I’ve worked so hard for this, and now it’s done,’” he said. “And there’s a lot of mixed emotions about this, you know? Happiness, sadness. And I always call it the post-Olympic depression, because this is just reality. If you win, if you lose, it hits pretty hard. And I’m excited for this time to write songs.”

Burgener is far from the only athlete to connect sport with sound. 

Athletes chilling out, grooving with huge headphones before competing has become a common sight across sports, from basketball to soccer and even swimming. But actually keeping the party going once the action starts is another thing. 

During these Games, a number of freestyle skiers and snowboarders brought tunes to Livigno, the host of the Winter Olympic action sports. For some skiers like Evan McEachran, a pair of earphones connected to a smartphone is as indispensable as skis, poles and helmet.

The Canadian had hard core rap playing inside his crash helmet during Sunday’s qualifying session for the men’s big air final.

“If I’m feeling like I’m a little low on energy, I’ll put on some high-tempo music,” he said. “That fires me up and gives me a little jolt.”

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Associated Press writer Joe Wilson in Livigno, Italy, contributed to this report.

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AP Winter Olympics coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics