Yuto Horigome, Jagger Eaton, Nyjah Huston deliver men’s street final for the ages in Paris Olympic men’s skateboard classic
Can we call this the greatest men’s skateboard final?
“Yes,” freshly minted Olympic silver medallist Jagger Eaton said in addressing media following the conclusion of the men’s street contest at Paris 2024.
Certainly, the occasion had all the hallmarks of something special.
There was the sumptuous setting of the Eiffel Tower and Champs-Elysees, enhanced by the intense glow of the Parisian sunshine. There was an audience in full voice, peppered with celebrity stars and partisan fans willing on their men. And then there were the finalists: three Olympic medallists from Tokyo; a 15-time X Games winner; the world champion and three contenders all making history for their country by simply being in the final eight.
All skaters battled fiercely throughout.
Cordano Russell, 19, at one point stood centre stage with his board aloft, stopping to absorb the moment. The Canadian had taken himself out of the medal hunt after capitulating in his runs, but remained defiant in the best trick section and when his third 90+ trick score went down he took in the applause knowing that, in his way, he had redeemed himself.
Nyjah Huston of the United States competes in the men's street final at the Olympic Games Paris 2024 at Place de la Concorde on 29 July 2024 in Paris, France.
The defining moment, however, ended up belonging to three titans of the street contest scene: Japan's Yuto Horigome, plus Americans Nyjah Huston and Eaton.
Huston, leading after the run section, held onto pole position until the fourth round of trick attempts. The 29-year-old legend, Horigome and Shirai Sora of Japan faltered, leaving the door open for Eaton to pounce.
The 23-year-old American seized the opportunity, landing an enormous nollie 270 switch backside noseblunt to earn a 95.25 score and snatch first place from his USA teammate.
It was a brief moment of joy for Eaton, but his grip on the top wouldn't last. Horigome, having bailed on his three attempts, came up clutch on his fifth and final turn, putting down a nollie 270 bluntslide down the hubba to earn a 97.08, the highest score of the final, and move into first place.
Huston and Eaton, going after the Japanese Olympic champion, needed high 90+ scores — scores both were capable of recording. Neither Huston nor Eaton were able to do this when it mattered most, handing Horigome the victory.
Nyjah Huston: "Skating is not easy"
It was street contest skateboarding in its rawest form.
One heavy trick was followed by another, and then another. The 17 90+ scores awarded were a testament to the quality on display in Paris. And just when the crowd was at risk of becoming desensitised to that quality, a slam would follow, providing a sharp reminder of the physical toll each skater was paying.
“It’s not easy. Skating is not easy,” bronze medallist Huston reiterated to the media afterwards. “It’s hard stuff we do out there.”
But just as the calibre of skating took centre stage so, too, did the stories behind the medallists, and what their achievements meant.
Huston, arguably one of the greatest skaters of all time for his oeuvre of video parts and résumé of contest wins, finally had an Olympic medal.
Though he admitted to “mixed feelings” about its hue owing to the “true skater” inside him who would have loved to have signed off in Paris with a winning trick and a smile, there was also a sense that the skater had proven himself to those who had doubted him.
Three years ago, on the baking concrete of Tokyo, under the weight of expectation swirling around skateboarding’s debut, Huston had stumbled, finishing the event in seventh place.
From there he had to battle his way to a quota spot for Paris 2024, a challenge made all the more difficult by the perennial depth of USA’s skateboarding talent and an ACL tear that sidelined him for eight months.
On one of the biggest stages, in one of the fiercest battles ever for first, Huston had all but conquered the pressure that once nearly suffocated him.
Jagger Eaton of the United States competes in the men's street skateboard competition at the Olympic Games Paris 2024 on the Place de la Concorde on 29 July 2024 in Paris, France.
Jagger Eaton: "I'm just so grateful"
Like Huston, Eaton, too, had a point to prove — but mostly to himself.
The bronze medallist from Tokyo 2020 had embarked on the Paris Olympic cycle in a quest to qualify in both street and park.
The two-year-long journey tested the skater to his core. Mind and body were stretched to their limits as he faced double the amount of contests to his peers. Ever the contender, however, Eaton took it all in his stride, fighting the rolling injuries as they came and went.
Until late last month, it looked as if the U.S. star was on track to secure his double quota. Then the final qualifier in Budapest arrived.
A late slip in the men’s park semi-final, followed by an impressive effort from his teammate Tom Schaar in the final, saw Eaton's dual dreams shatter into a million pieces as he missed out on a park quota by a whisker. Eaton was devastated.
Paris, therefore, was about redemption and providing an account for the work that had gone into the Olympic cycle.
“This stuff, it mentally and physically drains you. This last year and a half has been really tough, especially going for park and street. That really beat me up in every way, and missing the team in Budapest was devastating,” Eaton reflected afterwards.
“To be out there fighting to be on the podium and to be hitting my tricks under pressure like that, that’s what every athlete dreams of and I’m just so grateful. I’m so grateful: there are no other words.”
Yuto Horigome: "I gave everything to win"
For Horigome, now a two-time Olympic champion and skateboarding’s first-ever gold medallist, his emotional victory was a reminder to the world of his skateboarding prowess.
After becoming Japan’s darling when he won gold at home in Tokyo three years ago, the Olympic champion struggled with the spotlight that his new-found fame afforded him, not least on the Olympic contest circuit.
Surprise early departures and the sharp rise of newcomers dropping off the never-ending conveyor belt of Japanese talent saw his star power dim. Doubts started to swirl: would the Olympic champion even be around to defend his title in Paris?
Yuto Horigome of Japan competes catches some air during the men's street final on day three of the Olympic Games Paris 2024 at Place de la Concorde on 29 July 2024 in Paris, France.
At the last Olympic qualifier in Budapest, the same place where Eaton’s heart was broken, Horigome silenced his critics by putting on the performance of a lifetime as he came up clutch to secure his quota for Paris. Staring down the possibility of not being in France, the reigning champion opted not to give in and instead roared himself to victory.
It was somewhat fitting that, in that same fashion, Horigome again seized the moment to win in Paris. And parallels were certainly not lost on the Japanese history-maker who spoke of "a one-per-cent chance" of landing his trick to win, but also a refusal to regret what might have been had he not tried.
"I can’t believe it. I feel like I’m still dreaming," he said afterwards.
"I didn’t expect this moment might happen because I was not even sure if I could qualify for the Olympics here in Paris. It was very tough mentally and physically," Horigome continued. “I’m happy about that I gave everything I had to win.”