Chris Klug

Chris Klug is a professional alpine snowboarder known for his achievements in Olympic snowboarding and his advocacy for organ donation. Klug began competitive snowboard racing at age 11 and, by his junior year of high school, was competing full time on the World Cup circuit. He continued to compete at an international level through the 1990s, winning the U.S. Open slalom and the International Ski Federation World Cup at Grachen, Switzerland. Klug compiled four World Cup victories, three Grand Prix wins, five national titles, and a U.S. Open victory before his career was interrupted by a life-threatening diagnosis.

Diagnosed with a rare liver disease affecting only 1 in 10,000 people, Klug spent seven years waiting for a liver transplant. While on the wait list, he finished sixth in the Olympic Games in Nagano, Japan. After three months on the critical list, a donor match was found, and surgeons performed a six-hour transplant surgery. Klug returned to the World Cup circuit four months after his surgery and stood atop the podium in Olang, Italy, six months later.

Klug went on to win the bronze medal in Giant Slalom in snowboarding, becoming the first organ transplant recipient to win an Olympic medal. He was also one of eight Olympians chosen to carry the Ground Zero flag into the Winter Games Opening Ceremonies. Klug spent 20 years on the World Cup snowboarding circuit and competed in three Olympics, concluding his career with a seventh-place finish at the Games in Vancouver. He chronicled his journey in the memoir, "To the Edge and Back: My Story from Organ Transplant Survivor to Olympic Snowboarder," and produced the documentary "Ride of Your Life," which received the Delray Beach Film Festival Extreme Sports Film Award.

Following his transplant, Klug committed to raising awareness for organ donation and founded the Chris Klug Foundation to educate individuals about registering as organ, eye, and tissue donors, and to inspire those in the transplant community. Klug shares his story as a professional corporate and motivational speaker, addressing topics such as organ donation, survival, and perseverance at events nationwide.