That horrifying moment when you realize you're going to come up short...

These days it’s taken practically for granted that Candide Thovex is an unstoppable force in skiing. But back in 2007, this back-breaking crash at his own Invitational event at La Balme in La Clusaz almost knocked Candide out of the game permanently. At first the doctors thought he’d never ski again – but Candide returned seemingly stronger than ever, continuing to push the sport in new directions—just with not as many huge park jumps anymore!

Candide’s lastest no-snow edit for Audi is currently all the rage, and might have you wondering how to respond. To get a deeper look into the memorable career of this skiing iconoclast, check out our Decade of Candide compilation.