Olympic Ski Champion Who Tossed Baby Into Snowbank in Instagram Video Speaks Out After Backlash

A former Olympic skier who was criticized for dropping her baby into a deep snow bank on an Instagram video is speaking out to Inside Edition. Julia Mancuso tossed her 1-year-old, Sonny, into the snow outside her home in Lake Tahoe, California.

The reaction to the video has been intense, even though the baby was giggling and smiling throughout the clip.

"Poor baby. He is too small to say what he really felt,” one commenter said.

"He doesn't look like he's enjoying it at all,” another said.

But Mancuso told Inside Edition her baby was never in any danger.

“He had such a good time in the snow. I mean he just loves the snow and adventure,” Mancuso said.

And Mancuso knows a thing or two about snow herself — she brought home the gold medal in giant slalom at the 2006 Winter Olympics.

Still, she doesn’t recommend other parents try this at home.

“For me, snow is my element, so I would never recommend anyone going out and doing this just randomly to their child,” Mancuso said.

“I think it was one of those moments where I can very much defend my position because of my experience, because I knew exactly what I was throwing my son into and I feel like a lot of the comments are people that just don't know,” she added.

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