Shaun White is one of this year’s Academy Awards presenters. The invitation caught him by surprise and disrupted his plans to spend time in Europe with Nina Dobrev. Still, she convinced him to participate in one of the biggest events of the year.

In an interview with Extra, Shaun talked a bit about his trip to Costa Rica and about the opportunity to present an award at the Oscars. “It’s been good,” he said of his retirement. “I’m not mad at it. It’s all the things I’ve looked forward to doing when I finally had the time, and now I have the time.”

When speaking about the Oscars, he said, “I was supposed to go to Europe and meet up with Nina and I was like, ‘Hey, I got asked to do this thing, like, what do you think?’ And she was just, like, ‘You have to [go].’ … She’s like, ‘You have to do it.’” Sadly, she won’t be his date, but he does have an amazing alternative. “She can’t make it obviously she’s in Europe shooting,” he said. “But I called my mom and told her I’m taking her with me,” he said, laughing. “She’s so excited. I tried to screen record her reaction and the audio didn’t work, I’m so heartbroken. The things she said were incredible.”

After Shaun’s last Olympics, him and Nina spent a vacation in Costa Rica, enjoying the island alongside some friends. The two shared plenty of photos in their bathing suits and taking in the sights.

Shaun had participated in five Olympics, earning three gold medals. In his last performance, he landed in 4th place, an achievement he was proud of. “I wanted more today but I’ll take what I can get. It’s been my life,” he said in the Olympics broadcast. He bid an emotional goodbye to everyone who’d supported him through the years. “I just want to thank everyone for watching. Everyone at home, thank you. Snowboarding, thank you. It’s been the love of my life,” he said.