Thursday Dec 12, 2024
Thursday Dec 12, 2024
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Britain's Sky Brown won Bronze in the women's park competition
TOKYO (AFP): Skateboarder Sky Brown, 13, said a life-threatening accident only made her stronger as she became Britain's youngest Olympic medallist yesterday – and set her sights on doubling up with surfing in 2024.
Brown, just 11 at the time, suffered skull fractures and a broken wrist and hand in June 2020 when she took off for an air and plunged into the gap between two half-pipes, landing on her head.
The Japan-born skater, who has said her helmet saved her life, was urged to give up the sport but just over a year later she claimed bronze as skateboarding makes its Olympic debut.
Brown admitted there was a time when she did not know if she would skate at the Olympics, but that ultimately the “accident made me stronger”.
“I didn't know if I would skate really. My parents were saying 'Don't skate, do something else,'” she said at Tokyo's Ariake Urban Sports Park, her bronze medal around her neck.
“But I'm so happy to be here. I honestly feel like the accident made me stronger.” Brown, aged 13 years and 28 days, was in line to break an 85-year-old record as the youngest Olympic champion, attempting to lower the mark set by American diver Marjorie Gestring, who won 3m springboard gold aged 13 years and 268 days in 1936.
The Briton was not even the youngest skater on the podium after the women's park event – Japan's Kokona Hiraki took silver at 12 years and 343 days, behind her gold-winning teammate Sakura Yosozumi, 19.
Brown is already eyeing more glory at the Paris Olympics in 2024, when she hopes to compete in both skateboarding and surfing.
