Skateboarding is an action sport that involves riding and performing tricks using a skateboard, as well as a recreational activity, an art form, an entertainment industry job, and a method of transportation. Originating in the United States, skateboarding has been shaped and influenced by many skateboarders throughout the years. A 2009 report found that the skateboarding market is worth an estimated $4.8 billion in annual revenue, with 11.08 million active skateboarders in the world. In 2016, it was announced that skateboarding would be represented at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, for both male and female teams.
Anne Heggtveit, is a former alpine ski racer from Canada. She was an Olympic gold medallist and double world champion in 1960.
Longboarding is a variation of skateboarding typified by the use of longer boards ("decks") with longer wheelbases and softer wheels. While longboards vary widely in shape and size, compared to street skateboards longboards are designed to be more stable at speed and to have more traction due to larger wheel sizes and softer wheel durometers. While standard street skateboards may typically be between 28 and 34 inches long, longboards can range anywhere from 32 to 50 inches in length. Ride characteristics of longboards generally differ from that of street skateboards due to the use of specialized longboard trucks that have different properties than those typically used with skateboards; while street skateboards use "traditional kingpin" (TKP) trucks that are optimized for tight turning radii, ollie and flip tricks, slides, grinds, and transition skating, longboards are typically paired with "reverse kingpin" (RKP) trucks that are designed for increased stability at higher speeds, more "surfy" carving characteristics, and/or greater ride comfort for commuting over longer distances.
Powell Peralta is an American skateboard company founded by George Powell and Stacy Peralta in 1978. The company rose to prominence in the 1980s as skateboarding began maturing as a sport. The company featured the Bones Brigade, a team featuring the era's top competitors. Peralta left the company in 1991 and Powell continued to produce skateboard equipment as Powell, Bones Bearings and RollerBones. The two company founders reunited to produce the company's now classic inventory under the name Powell Classic.
Alan "Ollie" Gelfand is an influential American skateboarder credited with inventing the ollie, one of the most foundational skateboarding tricks.
Picabo Street is an American former World Cup alpine ski racer and Olympic gold medalist. She won the super G at the 1998 Winter Olympics and the downhill at the 1996 World Championships, along with three other Olympic and World Championship medals. Street also won World Cup downhill season titles in 1995 and 1996, the first American woman to do so, along with nine World Cup downhill race wins. Street was inducted into the National Ski Hall of Fame in 2004.
The Zephyr Competition Team were a group of American skateboarders in the mid-1970s from Santa Monica and Venice, California. Originally consisting of 12 members, the Z-boys were originally sponsored by the Jeff Ho Surfboards and Zephyr Productions surf and skate shop. Their innovative surfing-based style and aerial moves formed the foundations of contemporary vert and transition skateboarding. The story of the Z-Boys and the Zephyr shop have been popularized in feature films such as Lords of Dogtown and Dogtown and Z-Boys.
Michael Dong is a champion professional slalom skateboarder from Bothell, Washington, United States. Dong was ranked #5 in the world in 2005 and holds the 2003, 2004, and 2005 World Cyber Slalom titles.
Chimene Mary "Chemmy" Crawford-Alcott is an English former World Cup alpine ski racer. She competed in all five disciplines: downhill, super G, giant slalom, slalom and combined.
Peggy E. Oki is an American skateboarder, surfer, artist, and environmental activist. She was an original member of the Z-Boys and competed with the Zephyr Competition Team in the 1970s. She was the only female member of the Z-Boys.
Katharine Kreiner-Phillips is a former World Cup alpine ski racer and Olympic gold medalist from Canada.
Sylvia Burka is a former ice speed skater and track cyclist from Canada of Latvian descent. She represented Canada at three consecutive Winter Olympics, starting in 1972 in Sapporo, Japan. She was the first person in history to win a World Championship in both Allround and Sprint disciplines. She never won an Olympic medal, with her best Olympic result being the fourth place in 1000 m in 1976.
Ty Scott Page was a professional skateboarder and a leader in the skateboarding scene during "the golden era" of skateboarding in the early 1970s.
California Free Former was the world's largest skateboard manufacturer during the 1970s. From 1970 to 1981, it was owned by Rick Smith of ALS Industries with a business partner. They also held several licenses from Walt Disney, manufacturing roller skates and other Disney brand consumer products.
A skateboard style refers to the way a skateboarder prefers to ride a skateboard. Skateboard styles can be broadly divided into two different categories: skateboarding to perform tricks and skateboarding as a means of transportation. Styles of skateboarding have evolved and are influenced by a number of factors including sociocultural evolution, mass media, music, technology, corporate influence and individual skill level.
Slalom skateboarding is a form of downhill skateboard racing that first appeared in the 1960s and 1970s and has made a resurgence in popularity in the 2000s. Slalom racers skate down a course usually marked by plastic cones. The racer tries to get through the course with the fastest time, while knocking down the fewest cones. Each cone typically carries a penalty of a fraction of a second which is added to the skater's time.
Newton's Nation, originally Newton's Playground, is an Australian sports festival since 2008.
Jonna Mendes is a former World Cup alpine ski racer from the United States. She specialized in the speed events and raced for nine seasons on the World Cup circuit. Mendes competed in two Winter Olympics and four World Championships. She was the bronze medalist in the Super G at the 2003 World Championships in St. Moritz, Switzerland.
Lynn Kramer is an American skateboarder and snowboarder.
Judi Oyama is a professional skateboarder. She was inducted into the Skateboarding Hall of Fame in 2018.
