So I read the articles. The writers of two of the articles are the same people, and they sound jealous and petty to me. I'm guessing they were brought up with the 'Everyone is a precious little snowflake, and gets a participation trophy' ideaology. Those that espouse that ethos, often have a rude awakening in real life when things don't just consistently fall into place with minimal effort, year after year.
To consistently be the best at anything, you have to be very driven. I've worked in a professional sport for awhile now. Anyone that is consistently the best or close to it year after year in their vocation, is very driven.
Again, I don't know Shaun White. But I recognize his disciplined approach to trying to be the best year after year. In his sport, age will eventually catch up with him. But currently, he's clearly the best at what he does.