Young skaters from Japan and the UK soar in the women’s park competition Tokyo Olympics On Wednesday, hometown hero Sakura and Hiraki Kona won the gold and silver medals, while Britain’s Ten Brown won the bronze medal.
In the exciting finals, the 19-year-old Yosozumi landed on the ground with two 540 shots in her impressive first round, jumping to the top of the list with a maximum score of 60.09.
The 12-year-old Hiraki performed smoothly on Wednesday and finished second with a best result of 59.04.
The 13-year-old British player Brown was a popular candidate to win the women’s competition, but stumbled in the first two games. Her last 540 spins and flips as an independent player failed to get her to a higher position on the podium.
Away from the empty swimming pool where this type of skating was born in Southern California in the 1970s, the debut of skateboarding at the Tokyo Olympics marked a turning point for the sport.
Sometimes, in the Ariake City Sports Park, where the five Olympic rings are printed, young skaters look incredibly small against the backdrop of huge gray and purple ramps and bowls.
(Reporting by Mari Saito; Editing by Peter Rutherford and Lincoln Feast.)
