Skateboarding

“Everyone skates now, or has some attachment to it, or has some interest in it. It’s woven into the fabric of youth now.” Tony Hawk

Skateboarding is one of the newest sports to the Olympic Games, but skaters have been throwing gnarly tricks in parks and on the street for more than 70 years. With new leagues and events springing up around the world in recent years, the competitive side of this beloved sport is growing fast.

📜 History of Skateboarding

Skateboarding traces its origins somewhat unexpectedly to the sea. In the 1950s, surfers in California and Hawaii found themselves frustrated on calm days when they had no surf to catch. Innovative enthusiasts decide to bring the feeling of riding waves onto land, and the skateboard was born.

In 1963, the first skate competition was held in Hermosa Beach, California. More than 50 years later, in 2020, skateboarding was included in the Summer Olympics for the first time. Although some skaters maintain that it is more a lifestyle than a sport, there is no doubt that skateboarding is seeing higher intensity competition than ever before.

💯 Skateboarding Rules & Scoring

Competitive skateboarding is typically split into men’s and women’s events. Competitions are also categorised by skating discipline: park or street.

Park

Park skating takes place on purpose-built courses containing half-pipes, quarter-pipes, bowls, ramps, and bends. These concrete courses have steep sides, so skaters can build up speed and height for performing tricks in mid-air.

In park skateboarding events, each competitor usually has multiple, timed opportunities to perform on the course, with a panel of judges scoring each run. The judges award points for difficulty of tricks, height, speed, originality, execution, and the overall routine. Each skater takes their highest score from the multiple attempts, and the top scorers qualify for the next round of the competition.

Street

Street skateboarding is designed to replicate real-life settings, with courses featuring rails, steps, curbs, benches, and other urban obstacles.

In street events, each skater typically performs 2 or more timed runs on the course, following their own route. A panel of judges gives a score for each run, with points awarded for difficulty, execution, and originality. There may also be a separate tricks contest, where skaters are judged on individual tricks. The skaters with the most points from their best run and trick qualify to the next round of the event.