OLYMPIC SILVER MEDALIST Jeret “Speedy” Peterson was found dead in a remote canyon in Utah in what police are calling a suicide.

One of the world’s most risk-taking and innovative freestyle skiers, the creator of the one-of-a-kind “Hurricane” called 911 before shooting himself, police said. The 29-year-old had been cited for drunken driving Friday in Hailey, Idaho and had pleaded not guilty.

Officers found Peterson late last night between Salt Lake City and Park City in Lambs Canyon. Police said a suicide note was found near Peterson’s car; they declined to reveal what it said.

“Regardless of the amazing stuff he did skiing, it was the stuff he did for other people that was incredible to me,” said Peterson’s longtime coach and friend, Matt Christensen.

“A lot of people saw his story and said he must be a wild jackass and a cowboy. He was just the opposite.”

He was one of the most colorful of athletes, and he wore his heart on his sleeve — never more than on Feb. 25, 2010, when he walked off the mountain with tears streaming down his face after taking the Olympic silver medal.

“I know that a lot of people go through a lot of things in their life, and I just want them to realize they can overcome anything,” Peterson said that night. “There’s light at the end of the tunnel and mine was silver and I love it.”

It was a poignant chapter to a career that, until then, had been filled with success on the smaller stages of his fringe sport but defined in the mainstream by his moment at the Turin Olympics where, after finishing seventh, he was sent home early after a minor scuffle with a buddy in the street.

Over the next months and years, he began filling in the details of a life story replete with incredible highlights and crushing disappointments.

While in Italy, he was still reeling from the suicide of a friend, who shot himself in front of Peterson only months before.

Peterson also had problems with alcohol and depression and admitted he had his own thoughts of suicide, all stemming from a childhood in which he was sexually abused and lost his 5-year-old sister to a drunken driver.

He picked up his nickname as a young boy because the big helmet he wore reminded his coaches of Speed Racer of cartoon fame.

As his career progressed, he became better known for his signature jump, the “Hurricane”— five twists packed into three somersaults as he vaulted off the snowy ramp and flew 50 feet in the air.

He had seven wins on the World Cup circuit, was the 2005 World Cup champion and a three-time American champion.

– AP