ASPEN, Colo. - Being at the Winter X Games and seeing the perfectly polished halfpipe off in the distance has snowboarder Kaitlyn Farrington itching to try out some of her newest tricks.Like that backside 1080 — featuring three full rotations — that shes been mastering.Those days are now behind Farrington. No more twisting. No more spinning. No more of anything that involves her board leaving the snow.The gold medallist at the Sochi Olympics was forced to retire from competitions last week after doctors discovered a degenerative spine condition.Olympic champ done at 25 — its still something shes trying to wrap her mind around.She has a condition known as stenosis, which is a narrowing of the spinal cord and something shes had since birth. It was only detected after a crash three months ago in Austria that left her momentarily without feeling all the way to her toes.Shes thankful to have caught it before something more serious happened. And thankful the timing was such that she had a chance to win a gold medal in the halfpipe last February. Because that, they can never take away from her.This has been the craziest year of my life, said Farrington, who will be a spectator for the womens halfpipe final Saturday after finishing third last year. Win the gold medal and then find out that I have this condition and I cant ride halfpipe ever again?Its been wild, especially processing all of this.She showed up in Aspen to be a part of the social scene, and squeeze in some riding. No big air, of course.Im a grounded snowboarder as of now, she said. Its really hard, too.For so much of her life, she was Kaitlyn the Snowboarder. The sport was part of her identity, and her career reached an entirely new level on a magical night in Russia last winter when she edged a pair of former Olympic champions, Torah Bright and Kelly Clark.Farrington surprised everyone. Including herself.I dont think I knew I was going to come here and get a gold medal. I still dont really believe it, she said a few hours after her win.Now, shes trying to figure out the next act. Could be commentary work. Or maybe mentoring an up-and-comer (just not now, because shes not ready to coach yet).Hopefully, Ill still be Kaitlyn the Snowboarder or Kaitlyn the Celebrity, said Farrington, who was raised in Idaho and whose family sold livestock from their ranch to finance her career. I had some more things I wanted to do in the pipe. Its cut short now.But I feel like coming here (to Winter X) is about not letting snowboarding get fully taken away from me.Never has Farrington really had any sort of issues with her back. Only an accident alerted her to a potentially serious condition.At a photo shoot for a sponsor last October in Austria, Farrington was trying to land a jump when she fell backward and onto her upper back. She lost feeling all over her body. For nearly two minutes, she said she felt nothing, before sensation began to return. She convinced everyone she didnt need to go to the hospital, though, and even went snowboarding the next day, despite a burning feeling in her shoulders.Following a visit to her physical therapist back in the U.S., she decided to get her back checked out.Soon after, doctors were saying her career was over.They were like, With what youve chosen to do, youre so lucky you havent had another incident like this, Farrington said. Now that Ive had an episode, its more likely to come up again.Appearing at Winter X this week was a chance to explain to everyone what exactly happened to her. Farrington showed up at the Dew Tour a month ago and wasnt quite ready to share the bad news. She just told everyone shed be back in time for Winter X.And she is, too, she just cant compete.Its very bittersweet being here right now. I cried probably about 10 times from athletes hugging me, Farrington said. Now that everyone knows, people have sent me text messages saying, It was so great knowing you. Im like, Im not dead. Im still here.People think Im disappearing. Youre not going to get rid of me.___Follow Pat Graham on Twitter: http://twitter.com/pgraham34 Adidas NMD Hombre Rebajas . The win gives Canada its fifth title at the World Sledge Hockey Challenge. "Weve got to keep pushing," said Westlake, who led Canada with five goals in the tournament. "The second you let off the pedal, everyone catches up. Adidas NMD R2 Hombre . - Connor Brown and Dane Fox both scored in regulation and in the shootout, as the Erie Otters extended their win streak to 10 games by defeating the London Knights 4-3 on Saturday in Ontario Hockey League action. http://www.baratasnmd.com/ .com) - Real Madrid claimed its 16th consecutive victory across all competitions on Saturday after earning a 2-1 win over Malaga at the Estadio La Rosaleda. Adidas Continental 80 Baratas . Anderson shook off some unusually poor shooting and hit two clutch 3-pointers in overtime that carried the New Orleans Pelicans to a 111-106 victory over the Detroit Pistons on Wednesday night. Adidas Ultra Boost Rebajas . - A mixed martial arts fighter who changed his name to War Machine was ordered Friday to stand trial in Nevada state court on 34 felony charges including attempted murder, sexual assault and kidnapping that could get him life in prison for allegedly attacking his porn star ex-girlfriend and her friend.Calgary, AB (SportsNetwork.com) - Johnny Gaudreau remained red-hot, scoring twice as the Calgary Flames opened a six-game homestand with a 4-1 win over the lowly Edmonton Oilers on Saturday night. Gaudreaus two goals came after he got his first career hat trick in Calgarys last game, a 4-3 overtime win at Los Angeles on Monday. He has six goals in the last three games. Joe Colborne and Curtis Glencross also scored for the Flames, who have won twice this week on the heels of an eight-game losing streak. Jonas Hiller made 26 saves in the win. The NHL-worst Oilers have lost nine in a row (0-7-2) and 20 of their last 21 (1-14-6). Ryan Nugent-Hopkins scored their only goal 4:23 into the third period. Colborne and Gaudreau combined for three goals in a span of 1:40 in the first periiod against starting Edmonton goaltender Viktor Fasth.dddddddddddd Colborne scored on his own rebound at 7:08 and Gaudreaus first goal came after David Perron turned the puck over to him deep in the Edmonton zone, leaving him alone against Fasth. Gaudreaus second goal, just 16 seconds later at 8:48, came on a 2-on-0 break after T.J. Brodie fired a long pass down ice from in front of the Calgary net. Fasth stopped only three of the six shots he faced in 8:48 on the ice. Ben Scrivens made 20 saves the rest of the way. Game Notes Calgary has won four in a row over Edmonton. The teams will meet again on New Years Eve in Calgary ... The Oilers host Los Angeles on Tuesday ... Calgarys next game is also against Los Angeles, on Monday. ' ' '