Latest news with #WorldSkate
Kyodo News
2 days ago
- Sport
- Kyodo News
Skateboarding: Powerhouse Japan welcomes new Olympic age limit
KYODO NEWS - Jun 1, 2025 - 13:52 | Sports, All Despite the potential impact on its medal prospects, skateboarding powerhouse Japan has welcomed the new Olympic age limit restricting competition to athletes 14 and older from the 2028 Los Angeles Games. Governing body World Skate decided in April to institute the limit, which would have ruled some of Japan's previous Olympic medal-winning skateboarders ineligible. Japan's street skateboarding head coach Daisuke Hayakawa has nevertheless endorsed the new restriction against the backdrop of increasingly severe injuries, including ligament ruptures, being reported among growing children in many countries as the technical difficulty of tricks continues to rise. "I think it's a good decision. We can't overlook the risk of children attempting them while lacking the basis (for skills) or being physically immature," he said. Among Japan's record seven Olympic skateboarding medalists since the sport debuted at the 2021 Tokyo Games, Momiji Nishiya won women's street gold in Tokyo at 13 and Cocona Hiraki took park silver at 12, while Coco Yoshizawa was 14 when she triumphed in women's street in Paris last summer. Hayakawa believes the average age of the Japan national team would naturally not go any lower, as the stars who emerged at the Tokyo Games reach their peak years. He added that children's lighter bodyweights are not necessarily an advantage for aerial maneuvers that also require sufficient leg power. While World Skate also mandated a minimum age of 12 for other international tournaments, Japanese organizers kept recent domestic competitions in Kanagawa and Mie prefectures open to future stars aged between 7 and 10. With youngsters often drawn more to the culture of skateboarding than to competition, parents and children at the events did not seem too concerned by the latest developments. "My dream is to skate in a cool way. The Olympics isn't really a target," a 10-year-old at one of the events said. World Skate Japan has decided not to set an age limit for domestic tournaments amid the latest news, its board member Hitoshi Murakami said. "There might be changes in the growing process of children aiming for the Olympics from Los Angeles onward," he said. "We'll think about how we can support children of those ages." The International Olympic Committee started tightening age restrictions to protect child athletes after Russian figure skating prodigy Kamila Valieva tested positive for a banned substance at the 2022 Winter Games in Beijing. "I believe this change (in skateboarding) is also related to the IOC's policy," said Murakami, who expects little opposition in Japan to the new limit. Related coverage: Snowboarding: 6-time Olympian Tomoka Takeuchi to retire after 1 more season Golf: Chisato Iwai wins 1st U.S. tour title in Mexico
Kyodo News
4 days ago
- Sport
- Kyodo News
Skateboarding: Powerhouse Japan welcomes new Olympic age limit
KYODO NEWS - 11 minutes ago - 13:52 | Sports, All Despite the potential impact on its medal prospects, skateboarding powerhouse Japan has welcomed the new Olympic age limit restricting competition to athletes 14 and older from the 2028 Los Angeles Games. Governing body World Skate decided in April to institute the limit, which would have ruled some of Japan's previous Olympic medal-winning skateboarders ineligible. Japan's street skateboarding head coach Daisuke Hayakawa has nevertheless endorsed the new restriction against the backdrop of increasingly severe injuries, including ligament ruptures, being reported among growing children in many countries as the technical difficulty of tricks continues to rise. "I think it's a good decision. We can't overlook the risk of children attempting them while lacking the basis (for skills) or being physically immature," he said. Among Japan's record seven Olympic skateboarding medalists since the sport debuted at the 2021 Tokyo Games, Momiji Nishiya won women's street gold in Tokyo at 13 and Cocona Hiraki took park silver at 12, while Coco Yoshizawa was 14 when she triumphed in women's street in Paris last summer. Hayakawa believes the average age of the Japan national team would naturally not go any lower, as the stars who emerged at the Tokyo Games reach their peak years. He added that children's lighter bodyweights are not necessarily an advantage for aerial maneuvers that also require sufficient leg power. While World Skate also mandated a minimum age of 12 for other international tournaments, Japanese organizers kept recent domestic competitions in Kanagawa and Mie prefectures open to future stars aged between 7 and 10. With youngsters often drawn more to the culture of skateboarding than to competition, parents and children at the events did not seem too concerned by the latest developments. "My dream is to skate in a cool way. The Olympics isn't really a target," a 10-year-old at one of the events said. World Skate Japan has decided not to set an age limit for domestic tournaments amid the latest news, its board member Hitoshi Murakami said. "There might be changes in the growing process of children aiming for the Olympics from Los Angeles onward," he said. "We'll think about how we can support children of those ages." The International Olympic Committee started tightening age restrictions to protect child athletes after Russian figure skating prodigy Kamila Valieva tested positive for a banned substance at the 2022 Winter Games in Beijing. "I believe this change (in skateboarding) is also related to the IOC's policy," said Murakami, who expects little opposition in Japan to the new limit. Related coverage: Snowboarding: 6-time Olympian Tomoka Takeuchi to retire after 1 more season Golf: Chisato Iwai wins 1st U.S. tour title in Mexico
South China Morning Post
04-05-2025
- Sport
- South China Morning Post
Hong Kong's skateboarding scene rolls on
Skateparks were still a novelty in Hong Kong when Warren Stuart and his friends were showing off their skills in the late 1980s. In the days before the internet, they read magazines and watched videos to learn about overseas skateparks such as the one in Venice Beach, Los Angeles. They dreamed of pulling off rail flips and slides at a similar one in their own city one day. Thirty years later, Stuart, now 56, surveyed the new skate bowl at On Lok Mun Street Playground in Fanling during its recent public opening. The skate bowl is the first in the city to receive 'Competition Class 1 star' certification by World Skate. World Skate is the governing body officially recognised by the International Olympic Committee for skateboarding and roller sports activities. Its street course has been given 'Recreational Class 3 stars'. Stuart is the former head of the Skateboarding Subcommittee at the Federation of Roller Sports. He said the certification meant the facility could host official contests for China. The 3,800-square-metre facility took two years to build. It can be used for skateboarding, in-line skating, scootering and bicycle motocross by enthusiasts with different levels of ability. Quiz time When did Warren Stuart and his friends start skateboarding in Hong Kong? What is significant about the new skate bowl at On Lok Mun Street Playground? How large is the new skate facility in Fanling? What types of activities can be done at the new skate bowl? Warren Stuart is a notable figure in the skateboarding community in Hong Kong. Photo: Edmond So Suggested answers in the late 1980s it is Hong Kong's first skate bowl with a 'Competition Class 1 star' certification from World Skate 3,800 square metres skateboarding, in-line skating, scootering and bicycle motocross
South China Morning Post
19-04-2025
- Sport
- South China Morning Post
How skateboarding park that is milestone for Hong Kong fulfilled boyhood dream
Skateparks were still a novelty in Hong Kong when Warren Stuart and his friends were showing off their skills at a black podium between the now-demolished Queen's Pier and City Hall in Central in the late 1980s. Advertisement In the days before the internet, they read magazines and watched videos to learn about overseas skateparks such as the one in Venice Beach, Los Angeles, as they dreamed of pulling off rail flips and slides at a similar one in their own city one day. Thirty years later, after consulting on numerous skatepark projects across Asia, Stuart, now 56, stood surveying the new skate bowl at On Lok Mun Street Playground in Fanling when it opened to the public on Saturday. The skate bowl is the first in the city to receive 'Competition Class 1 star' certification by World Skate, the governing body officially recognised by the International Olympic Committee for skateboarding and roller sports activities. Its street course has attained 'Recreational Class 3 stars'. 'I'm excited. This is the best thing to happen to Hong Kong skateboarding. To have a skate park like this. First of its kind. Quality is impeccable,' Stuart said. 'It's the first and only skate park in Hong Kong that has a bowl like this.' To build the facility, the government collaborated with California Skateparks, which built the skateboarding venue for the Paris Olympics. Elson Li Stuart, a former head of the Skateboarding Subcommittee at the Federation of Roller Sports, said the certification meant the facility could host official contests for China.
South China Morning Post
10-04-2025
- Sport
- South China Morning Post
Hong Kong ramps up skatepark offerings with new venue in Fanling
Hong Kong skateboarders will be able to show off their skills at a new skatepark in Fanling on Saturday, with part of the site becoming the first of its kind in the city to receive a competition class certification from an international governing body. Advertisement The Leisure and Cultural Services Department said on Thursday that the skate bowl at On Lok Mun Street Playground had been certified as 'Competition Class 1 star' for holding events, while its street course had attained 'Recreational Class 3 stars'. The spokesman said the certifications were awarded by World Skate, the governing body officially recognised by the International Olympic Committee for skateboarding and roller sports. The Civil Engineering and Development Department's Tom Leung Wai-lok, a senior engineer involved in the park's construction, said authorities had collaborated with US company California Skateparks, which had built the skateboarding venue for the Paris Olympics. 'Experts from Japan, Mexico and the United States had just finished the skatepark for the Paris Olympics, and then came to Hong Kong to build this skatepark for us,' he said. Advertisement 'They are also skateboarding enthusiasts. With their craft and their attention to detail, they have meticulously built the skatepark to ensure a smooth skating experience.'
