Watching Olympic Skateboarding Among 20 Skeptical, Aging Skaters
Skateboarders like myself feared that the activity’s mainstream debut would change our culture. Instead, we left our mark on the Games.
As a skateboarder, I found the lead-up to this summer’s Olympics exhausting. Ever since the International Olympic Committee announced in 2016 that skateboarding would become an Olympic event, skaters across the United States have rehashed an endless debate: Are we sacrificing part of our creative soul by turning a means of expression into a garishly competitive ? Or could the Olympics indirectly benefit us by encouraging funding for public skate parks and getting more people on boards? A similar dilemma plagues many subcultures: the pull of money, , or primetime broadcasts versus the rebellious values that many adherents
