Think that extreme sports are only for the fearless and thrill-seeking males? Well, you’re not quite right because a lot of females have joined this field and they’re becoming younger and younger. Just take the case of 17-year-old Jamie Anderson from South Lake Tahoe, California.

It’s really incredible how this young lady made a mark for herself and in the dangerous sports of snowboarding at that. Earning the gold medal in the 2007 Winter X Games at the age of 16 is truly an unbeatable achievement for a female youngster like her. But well, she did it and we’re all thumbs up.

Jammin’ Jamie, as she is also known, started out in snowboarding at only nine years old. In fact, at 10, she was already getting sponsorship offers. And as most of the snowboarding stars we have, sports runs in the family. Jamie’s two older sisters were her biggest influence in snowboarding. Truth is, sister Joanie also competed in the Winter X Games 11 and ended the top winner in the SnowboarderX category. Together, Jamie and Joanie became the first sisters to each win a Winter X event.

This aggressive snowboarder made her debut in the 2004 Winter X Games at only 13 years old. She ended up in 9th place which is not bad for a first timer. In the 2006 games, she got the bronze medal in the slopestyle event setting a record as the youngest medalist in the history of the X Games. Another major feat for her was being named Most Oustanding Female Athelete of Winter X Games 11.

In 2007, she also got the top spot in the Burton U.S. Open and placed second at the Roxy Chicken Jam in Kaprun, Austria. Additionally, she won the fifth place in the TTR World Tour and second place in the World Snowboard Tour.

When not snowboarding, Jamie likes listening to rap music and eating her favorite Italian food. Being an outdoor person, she says she loves swimming, hiking around Tahoe and just floating the river with friends.

With these early achievements, extreme sports fans will be seeing a lot more of Jamie Anderson in future snowboarding competitions. And surely with her confidence and great skills, this young lady will continue to become a top international athlete for the many years to come with more sponsors backing her up to add to her already long list of existing ones such as Billabong, Salomon, Electric, DVS, Grenade, Neff, Rockstar and Sierra. You go girl!