Olympics
11-year-old British skateboarder Sky Brown is lucky to be alive after being involved in a horrific fall during training in California last week. Landing head-first, she suffered skull fractures and broken bones in her left wrist and hand and was taken to hospital by helicopter.
This was my worst fall yet. My helmet and arm saved my life. This will not stop me. I am going for gold in Tokyo 2021. Stay strong. Stay positive. I’m so excited to represent Team Great Britain in the Tokyo 2020 (now 2021!) Summer Olympics! Follow my journey as the youngest Olympic athlete to compete in Tokyo through many qualifier competitions leading up to the summer games.
– Sky Brown
A video posted to her Instagram and YouTube pages show the young girl flying off the end of a half-pipe at high speed, a crash legendary skater Tony Hawk describes as “the worst fall one could take from a vert ramp”.
Also in the video, Brown reassured fans from her hospital bed that although she is battered and bruised, she was “excited to come back even stronger and even tougher”, reports CNN.
“I don’t usually post my falls or talk about them, because I want people to see the fun in what I do, but this was my worst fall, and I just want everyone to know that I’m OK. It’s OK to fall sometimes. I’m just going to get back up and push even harder. I know there’s a lot going on in the world right now and I want everyone to know that whatever we do we’ve got to do it with love and happiness.”
– Sky Brown
Brown is targeting Gold at the Tokyo Games, which were postponed until 2021 due to the coronavirus pandemic. It will be the first time the sport has featured in the quadrennial sporting extravaganza.
The video below is of her nailing the McTwist after multiple attempts. In a previous interview, Tony Hawk claimed it took him months to learn the McTwist back in 1984. It took Sky a couple of days!
