海角大神

When Olympic spirit meets the free spirits of skateboarding

In the last round of the street skating final, Alexis Sablone had a choice. Of the eight finalists last Monday, she ranked near the top. For her upcoming trick she could try something simple, earn near-guaranteed points, and probably leave with a medal. Or she could try something bolder.

Ms. Sablone went for it, attempting a kickflip backside 50-50, a reverse of her signature move. Jumping off a ramp onto a sloping stair ledge 鈥� known in skateboarding as a 鈥渉ubba鈥� 鈥� she misplaced her feet and fell to the ground. Receiving zero points for the trick, Ms. Sablone finished in fourth.聽

After the match, though, she wasn鈥檛 entirely sure what a medal would have meant.

A meticulous competitor and seven-time X Games medalist, Ms. Sablone came to Japan for a medal. But she doesn鈥檛 consider skateboarding a sport, at least not like other ones at the Games. At its essence, skating is a form of expression, says Ms. Sablone. Scoring someone鈥檚 trick is almost like scoring someone鈥檚 voice.

To attract a younger audience, the Olympics added four new sports for Tokyo: skateboarding, sport climbing, surfing, and karate. But for some competitors, the Games present an ethical dilemma. Skateboarding in particular has a distinct countercultural ethos. Joining the Olympics, critics say, may sacrifice part of the sport鈥檚 identity.

For these athletes, the Games are a cultural exchange of sorts. Skateboarding can help bring new fans to the Olympics. The Olympics can help show off and diversify skateboarding. Each side has room to benefit, which needn鈥檛 come at the cost of authenticity.

Skateboarding is so big, now, that 鈥渢here鈥檚 a place for everyone,鈥� Ms. Sablone said. 鈥淏ut it鈥檚 very important that the heart of skateboarding doesn鈥檛 die. And I don鈥檛 think it really ever will.鈥�

New direction

The International Olympic Committee stated its motives clearly when it added a tranche of new sports in 2016.聽

鈥淲e want to take sport to the youth,鈥� IOC President Thomas Bach said at the time. 鈥淲ith the many options that young people have, we cannot expect any more that they will come automatically to us. We have to go to them.鈥�

In skateboarding, the generational appeal is evident in its athletes. Ms. Sablone, considered an older skateboarder at age 34, competed beside a slate mostly made up of teenagers 鈥� a couple of whom still had braces. The three medaling athletes were all in their teens.聽

鈥淚 made history at 13 years old,鈥� said Rayssa Leal, who earned silver for Brazil at the July 26 event. 鈥淚 hope I can be at many other Olympic Games.鈥�

Skateboarding鈥檚 charisma brings a different competitive atmosphere to the Olympics. Success depends on the ability to fall and get back up, which could be maddening without the support of other skaters.

In her five attempts to land a trick in the street skating final, Margielyn Didal of the Philippines fell multiple times, scraping against the ground in her baggy orange pants. Each time, after a moment, she hopped up and extended a smiling thumbs-up to the crowd. The other skaters applauded.聽

鈥淚t鈥檚 skateboarding; you cheer for everyone, for each other,鈥� she said. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 how skateboarders share the love.鈥�

The sport鈥檚 characteristic chutzpah was on full display, too. In the July 25 men鈥檚 street skating final, U.S. gold medal favorite Nyjah Huston finished seventh after refusing to attempt simple tricks, even after falling multiple times.聽

鈥淚 would have liked to have landed a couple more tricks out there,鈥� he said after the event. 鈥淏ut it鈥檚 still an honor to be out here skating at the Olympics. Still stoked to make the finals and be out skating with all these amazing guys.鈥澛犅�

Next generation

Even as skateboarding marks a shift for the Olympics, this Olympics comes at a moment of change for skateboarding, as well.

When Ms. Sablone came to the sport around the early 2000s, it was hard to find another woman who skated. Historically, skateboarding was heavily male, with a culture sometimes hostile to women鈥檚 involvement.

鈥淭o be a female skateboarder you kind of have to have thick skin,鈥� she said.

In recent years that鈥檚 started to shift, as more women pick up the sport and With a host of role models for the next generation of skateboarders, the Olympics may accelerate the sport鈥檚 integration. In Tokyo, the number of male and female skaters is even.聽

鈥淗aving guys and girls here on the stage is helping to bring some attention to [the sport鈥檚 inequality] and is starting to push the industry to change,鈥� Ms. Sablone said.

The Olympic imprimatur, coupled with its spotlight on female athletes, makes competing in Tokyo a worthy bet, she added 鈥� one that doesn鈥檛 necessarily undercut the sport鈥檚 culture.聽

This will be her only Games, she says, but not the end of her skateboarding career. She鈥檒l continue walking through the streets near her home in Brooklyn, New York, with an eye for a nice rail to slide down with her board. There will still be nights when she spends hours attempting the same trick, to get it just right.聽

She鈥檚 already passed the torch to a new generation, she says. It鈥檚 in good hands.聽

鈥淚鈥檝e seen skateboarding through so many phases and this is ... a historic moment,鈥� said Ms. Sablone. 鈥淚鈥檓 just glad that I was able to overlap with this.鈥�