Horigome Yuto exclusive: It’s not always as easy as it looks
Ahead of the world street skateboarding championships in Sharjah, United Arab Emirates, the Japanese Olympic champion opened up to Olympics.com on the truth behind his effortless style and his Paris 2024 ambitions.
Skateboarding
Just one look at Horigome Yuto’s 2022 trophy haul and it wouldn’t take you long to conclude that skateboarding comes naturally to the 24-year-old.
Last year the Tokyo 2020 gold medallist cleaned up across the competition scene, claiming two X Games medals, one gold in Chiba and one bronze in California, a second-place finish at Dew Tour and two Street League titles.
It was another remarkable season for the Japanese skater, who has rarely slipped since winning on his Olympic debut. And it was another where his rivals were left perplexed.
No one is more aware than Horigome that when it comes to his skateboarding, he projects a certain easiness: “People often tell me that my skating 'looks easy' or that ‘even difficult tricks look easy,” he tells Olympics.com.
The reality, he insists, is a little different.
What people see is what he chooses for them to see, and it is nearly always in the context of competition. If it looks effortless that is because it is supposed to, but it’s not without hours of hard work and practice:
“It's how the contest is presented,” the Tokyo native explains. “Contests are different from normal skating. You get points for being attractive, so you have to compose a good line, land the biggest move towards the end, and get the audience excited.
“When I skate in competitions, I try to perform tricks that I’m good at and hit techniques that I can’t miss, so maybe that’s why it looks pretty easy. There’s a lot of practice that goes on behind the scenes. I don’t really think about it when I’m skating, but it’s not always easy.”
Horigome Yuto: Feeling 'more relaxed' ahead of Paris 2024
If those watching Horigome skating underestimate the level of work that goes into it, then it is at their peril. Like his skateboarding, the Japanese rider is as cool as they come but his ambition burns bright.
Speaking back at last year’s World Street Skateboarding in Rome, Italy, Horigome made it clear that with his first Olympic experience now banked, he's already turning to the next:
“When I was competing in the Tokyo Olympics, the pressure and expectations were really high. It was really tough. But now that the Tokyo Olympics are over, I can see new challenges and goals, and I want to be active in Paris.”
An Olympic champion declaring he wants to do well at the next Games is, of course, not all that surprising. However, for Horigome, Paris also brings with it a sense of freedom.
Though every skateboarder was faced with navigating the Olympics for the first time, there was an additional pressure on Horigome as the home favourite. In France the burden to perform, he feels, won’t be quite so great, and having now successfully negotiated that particular change, the street skateboarder is quietly confident of what he might be able to achieve:
“I think I'll be able to take on the challenge this time with a different feeling than I did at the Tokyo Olympics,” Horigome said. “Tokyo was my hometown, and it was my first experience, so I feel a little more relaxed now."
Olympic champion Horigome: Aiming to set the record straight in Sharjah
In order for Horigome to realise his dream of scoring a double in the ‘City of Light’ he must first continue on the road to Olympic qualification which, for street skaters, will be the World Championships at the Aljada Skate Park in United Arab Emirates, beginning 29 January.
Having performed below expectations at the first qualifier in Rome to finish eighth overall, there will be little doubt that Horigome will be looking to set the record straight in Sharjah with the eyes of the world watching.
And, given his recent string of podium finishes, few would bet against him going the distance.