The 2020 Summer Olympics are just around the corner, and new additions to the games will make this year one for the books.
Tokyo is hosting the games for a second time, 56 years after its first Summer Olympics. These Games will see the introduction of several new sports to the lineup, including karate, surfing and sport climbing.
One new addition, however, has had mixed reactions from local athletes.
Skateboarding will also make its debut as an Olympic sport this summer.
Due to the sport’s underground roots, its transition to the big leagues has caused skaters across the globe to consider the impact Olympic competition will have on the sport.
Skateboarding has upheld a certain reputation since breaking into the mainstream; a reputation rooted in straying away from the norm. For decades, skateboarders have been painted as misfits and trouble makers. This stigma has significantly impacted society’s ability to see skateboarding as a true sport.
This stigma has also forced skaters to stay underground – creating their own community, culture and rule books.
Because skateboarding walks the line between sport and self-expression, the community has become divided. Some skaters see the sport’s Olympic debut as a step in the right direction. Others see it as selling out.
For local skate shop owner, Brian Smith, picking a side of the debate hasn’t been easy.
“As the owner of a skate shop, yeah, this is great. Getting more kids to skate is always the goal. But, as a skater myself, it goes against a lot of what I know,” Smith explains.
Smith has been skating since childhood and has been a part of Lethbridge’s skateboarding scene for over a decade. He is now living out his childhood dream of owning and operating a local skateboard shop. Along with business partner, Ian Gauthier, Smith holds down the fort at Boarderline.
Though Smith hopes skateboarding’s Olympic debut will give the sport the credibility it deserves, he worries that Olympic rule books will prioritize traditional athleticism over the longstanding style and culture the sport was built on.
“It’s all about self-expression and I don’t know how you’re going to put a score on that. The best skaters aren’t the most technical ones; they’re the ones trying new things and messing around,” Smith said.
Though Smith’s business partner sees both sides of the debate, too, he remains hopeful for the future of skateboarding.
“[Skateboarding] becoming an Olympic sport is a win because we’re trying to break down that stigma. Competition skating has been around and been debated for years and this is just another level of that,” Gauthier said.
The Summer Games will feature two disciplines of skateboarding: park and street.
The park competition will take place on a hollowed-out course featuring a complex series of twists and turns. The street competition features a straight course with stairs, handrails, benches, walls and slopes to mimic a real street. Only one athlete rides at a time, and competitors get three timed runs to post their best score.
Skateboarders will compete in Tokyo at the Aomi Urban Sports Venue, which will also host 3×3 basketball and sport climbing. The competition takes place throughout the entire Games, from July 24 to Aug. 9.
