“If I could go back and tell my younger self anything, it would be not to take anything for granted. It could all be over tomorrow. You just have to thank God for every opportunity,” said 10-time National Finals Rodeo qualifier Tilden Hooper.

At 20 years into his professional career, Hooper defines success differently than he once did.

The bareback rider, originally from Carthage, Texas, has built a decorated career spanning two decades. Hooper has earned more than $1.7 million and is entering his 20th season as a PRCA cardholder. He is now chasing his 11th NFR qualification — and his first gold buckle.

A dominant 92-point ride in the final round of the Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo secured Hooper the win and a $20,000 payday earlier this month. Currently ranked No. 5 in the world standings midway through the Texas Swing, he is positioning himself well for another strong year.

But for the veteran competitor, success is about more than scores and standings.

Hooper speaks often about gratitude — for his family, his faith and the perspective rodeo has given him through its inevitable highs and lows.

“Rodeo is such a roller coaster. You can be 90 one day and zero the next, and it’s easy to focus on the zero in the heat of competition. It’s easy to gloss over the good times,” Hooper said. “I’m very grateful I’ve been able to do this long enough to see it for what it is and know in my heart I didn’t take it for granted. My family was there with me in Fort Worth, and I got to high-five my kids in the front row.”

Moments like that, he said, are what matter most.

“It’s not that what I do doesn’t make me happy, but my happiness doesn’t come from the score they call out,” Hooper said. “It comes from the blessings God has given me — my family and friends. I’m always grateful when it all comes together and works out inside the arena.”

Throughout his 20-year professional career, highlighted by years of NFR qualifications and wins at nearly every major professional rodeo, like Fort Worth (2020, 2026), Reno Rodeo (2012, 2021), and the Pendleton Round Up (2019)– just to name a few; Hooper said gratitude has carried him through difficult seasons and kept him steady during winning streaks.

“Don’t get too high on the highs and too low on the lows,” said the proud husband and father.

The nature of professional rodeo, he added, demands both physical and mental resilience.

“The sport of rodeo is the only sport I’ve played professionally, but it has to be one of the most physically and mentally demanding,” Hooper said. “One day you’re qualifying for your 10th National Finals, and the next the NFR is over and you didn’t win a check. A few weeks later, you go to Fort Worth and win.”

As Hooper pursues his 11th NFR qualification, he will look to build on his early-season momentum through the remainder of the Texas Swing and into the spring and summer run of the PRCA season — grounded in discipline, guided by perspective and anchored in gratitude.

MILAN — Ilia Malinin posted a video on social media Monday juxtaposing images of his many triumphs with a black-and-white image of the U.S. figure skater with his head buried in his hands, and a caption hinting at an “inevitable crash” amid the pressure of the Olympics while teasing that a “version of the story” is coming on Saturday.

That is when Malinin is expected to skate in the traditional exhibition gala to wrap up the Olympic figure skating program.

Malinin, who helped the U.S. clinch the team gold medal early in the Winter Games, was the heavy favorite to add another gold in the individual event. But he fell twice and struggled throughout his free skate on Friday, ending up in eighth.

He acknowledged afterward that the pressure of the Olympics had worn him down, saying: “I didn’t really know how to handle it.”

Malinin alluded again to the weight he felt while competing in Milan in the caption to his social media video.

“On the world’s biggest stage, those who appear the strongest may still be fighting invisible battles on the inside,” wrote the 21-year-old Malinin. “Even your happiest memories can end up tainted by the noise. Vile online hatred attacks the mind and fear lures it into the darkness, no matter how hard you try to stay sane through the endless insurmountable pressure. It all builds up as these moments flash before your eyes, resulting in an inevitable crash.”

Malinin, who is expected to chase a third consecutive world title next month in Prague, had been unbeaten in 14 events over more than two years. Yet while Malinin always seemed to exude a preternatural calm that belied his age, the son of Olympic skaters Tatiana Malinina and Roman Skorniakov had admitted early in the Winter Games that he was feeling the pressure.

The first time came after an uneven short program in the team event, when he finished behind Yuma Kagiyama of Japan — the eventual individual silver medalist. Malinin referenced the strain of the Olympics again after the Americans had won the team gold medal.

But he seemed to be the loose, confident Malinin that his fans had come to know after winning the individual short program. He even playfully faked that he was about to do a risky backflip on the carpeted runway during his free skate introduction.

The program got off to a good start with a quad lutz, but the problems began when he bailed out of his quad axel. He ended up falling twice later in the program, and the resulting score was his worst since the U.S. International Classic in September 2022.

Malinin was magnanimous afterward, hugging and congratulating surprise gold medalist Mikhail Shaidorov of Kazakhstan. He then answered a barrage of questions from reporters with poise and maturity that few would have had in such a situation.

“The nerves just went, so overwhelming,” he said, “and especially going into that starting pose, I just felt like all the traumatic moments of my life really just started flooding my head. So many negative thoughts that flooded into there and I could not handle it.”

“All I know is that it wasn’t my best skate,” Malinin added later, “and it was definitely something I wasn’t expecting. And it’s done, so I can’t go back and change it, even though I would love to.”