All for one: Skateboarder Netsuke Kairi lifts the lid on team Japan dynamics - “We are all fighting together”
One of the top skateboarding storylines heading into the Olympic Qualifier Series Budapest is the fate of the Japanese men’s street skateboarding team.
Skateboarding
Stronger together.
In the individual pursuit of skateboarding, it may be a contradiction in terms but for Japanese street star Netsuke Kairi, friendship has become the secret force behind his success.
Sitting for an interview with Olympics.com at the Olympic Qualifier Series in Shanghai the 20-year-old skater is reflecting on the depth of the Japanese men’s skating ranks.
The qualification fight for going down in Team Japan for quota spots for the Olympic Games Paris 2024 has become one of the major talking points heading into the Olympic Qualifier Series in Budapest (20-23 June).
A maximum of three are available for one National Olympic Committee (NOC) and with six skaters within the top 15, Japan's depth is in the spotlight.
Amidst those in the fray is Olympic champion Horigome Yuto who is ranked fifth among Japanese skaters. Horigome's star power, which skyrocketed after his victory at Tokyo 2020, has put an even bigger focus on the apparent battle and the dynamics between the group.
It would be easy to get wrapped up in narratives of rivalry and bitterness such is the quality of all six of the skaters in contention, but for Netsuke, who is currently inside the bubble, that betrays the truth of the situation.
“It’s an individual competition but we get along well,” Netsuke says to Olympics.com, explaining the internal dynamics of the group. “I feel a sense of security when I’m with them. I feel like we are all fighting together.
“We talk about quite a few things,” he continues discussing how the skaters interact. “If I had been alone competing, I definitely don't think I would have been able to compete so well in the finals.”
“Everyone is very calm and focused"
Netsuke’s loyalty is not all that surprising given the extent of some of his relationships in the team
Tokyo 2020 Olympian Aoki Yukito, who is currently ranked sixth among the Japanese skaters and 15th overall, Netsuke has known for over a decade having met him in elementary school in Shizuoka.
The duo first connected over their love of skateboarding with Netsuke captivated by the way Aoki could flip his board: “I couldn’t do it,” he remembers fondly.
When Aoki was selected to represent Japan during skateboarding's Olympic debut at Tokyo 2020, Netsuke tuned in to support his friend from home. His imagination also wondered what it would be like to be there and compete.
To the delight of the home team, Japan turned out five Olympic medals from the skateboarding contests more so than any other country. And ever since, the conveyor belt of talent hasn’t stopped spitting out more and more phenoms.
Onodera Ginwoo, 14, is the latest in the men’s street discipline having made his name after clinching a world medal, then just 13. He now sits on top of the World Skate Rankings.
As to why Japan has become such a dominant force in skate contrary to the lukewarm reception of skating within the country at large, for Netsuke, it comes down to composure.
“Everyone is very calm and focused, and I think our strength is that we can calmly look at the score and choose are tricks accordingly.”
The way the street contests currently operate, guile is certainly a deciding factor but Netsuke perhaps understates the number of video-part-ending tricks each of the top Japanese riders appears to have on lock to raise the scores when needed.
"It's almost like a family or a girlfriend"
If the deep connection between Netsuke and his fellow Japanese skaters is one dimension to his successes on the street course then the other is the bond he has with his board.
“It’s almost like a family or a girlfriend,” Netsuke jokes. “I’ve been living together with skateboarding for about half my life.”
The product of that time on the board, learning and growing is now plain to see with Netsuke now trending as one of the top street skaters in the world.
Since qualification for Paris 2024 began he has risen from 23rd at the first contest in Rome, to world silver medallist just 15 months later. This year he bagged his first World Skateboarding Tour win in Dubai, in March.
Like any sincere bond, Netsuke doesn’t question how it works too much. That much he gives away as he talks about how he navigates contests.
“I always skate hoping I can do my best; make my own decisions and not make mistakes,” he explains. hinting at his overall strategy. “I am most conscious of doing tricks that only I can do and do them at my favourite spots.
“I’m doing it without thinking too deeply,” he concludes.
Whatever the magic that flows between Netsuke and his skateboard, the Japanese skater will need to tap into it in Budapest.
Ahead of the final showdown, Netsuke is currently in fifth place with 235,113 points in the World Skate Rankings. Onodera is the only Japanese skater ahead of him while world champion Shirai Sora is just behind him in sixth.
With ranking points inflated for the OQS, nothing will be determined until the close of play on Sunday 23 June. It’ll be the ride of Netsuke’s life and the skater will be drawing on the energy of his teammates to get it done.