U.S. Olympic snowboarder: Tinder soars to the next level in Sochi

Women's snowboard slopestyle gold medalist Jamie Anderson of the U.S. stands on the podium during the medals ceremony at the 2014 Winter Olympics. Anderson says Tinder has been a hit in Sochi.

By Salvador Rodriguez

Feb. 13, 2014 10:18 AM PT

U.S. snowboarder Jamie Anderson said she and her fellow Olympic athletes in Sochi are big fans of Tinder, the mobile dating app that helps mutually attracted users connect with one another.

Speaking with Us Weekly, Anderson said Tinder “is on the next level” in Sochi.

“It’s all athletes!” she said. “In the mountain village it’s all athletes. It’s hilarious. There are some cuties on there.”

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Los Angeles-based Tinder became popular last year for allowing users to quickly begin conversations with others they find attractive.

To use the app, users first create a profile with information about themselves and upload pictures. Tinder then recommends users to them. If the user finds a person attractive he or she can swipe right. If not, a swipe to the left. If two users both swipe right on each others’ profiles, Tinder will notify both and allow them to begin messaging each other.

Asked about usage in Sochi, Tinder told The Times that it is seeing 400% daily growth in the Russian city. However, Sochi is still not one of Tinder’s major markets.

“We have seen a noticeable spike in users and activity in Sochi over the last several days, but it still remains a small territory for us,” Tinder told The Times.

As for Anderson the snowboarder, Tinder at Sochi became too much.

“There was a point where I had to be, like, OK, this is way too distracting,” she said. “I deleted my account to focus on the Olympics.”

Anderson won gold in slopestyle earlier this week.

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