Rayssa Leal Wins Bronze, Coco Yoshizawa Takes Skateboarding Gold
When Brazilian superstar Rayssa Leal nailed her crucial final trick in the women’s street skateboarding final at the Paris Olympics, the stadium erupted in a thunderous cheer from the sea of green-and-gold-clad fans.
In that pivotal moment, Leal – immensely popular in Brazil and well-supported in Paris – vaulted from fifth to third place, seizing her last chance to secure a second Olympic medal.
Leading the pack were the Japanese duo Coco Yoshizawa, who clinched gold with a stellar score on her fourth trick, and Liz Akama, who had dominated much of the competition.
Mirroring the Tokyo event, the podium was once again an all-teen affair: Yoshizawa at 14, Akama at 15, and Leal – who became Brazil’s youngest Olympic medalist with a silver three years ago – at 16.
Though unable to improve on her silver from Tokyo, Leal, along with her ardent supporters, was ecstatic and relieved to win bronze dramatically. Her final act, scoring 88.83, pushed her ahead of China’s Cui Chenxi.
Leal first shot to fame when a video of her skateboarding at seven, dressed in a blue fairy princess costume, went viral. Skateboarding legend Tony Hawk shared it, lauding her “fairytale heelflip.”
Dubbed the fadinha do skate – Portuguese for “skate fairy” – Leal’s popularity has since soared. With sponsors like Nike and Monster Energy and 7 million Instagram followers, her skateboarding career has only ascended.
The highlight of her Paris performance at Urban Park, a temporary venue at Place de la Concorde, was scoring 92.88 for one of her two successful tricks – the second-highest score in the final.
“When I was very young, I dreamed of becoming a skateboard athlete,” Leal told reporters. “Now, here I am, with a second Olympic medal. Thank God, I’m very happy to be here.”
A preliminary round of 22 competitors was whittled down to eight finalists, all teenagers between 14 and 19. Yoshizawa qualified first, followed by Akama, while Leal was seventh.
Akama led most of the final, jumping from last to first between her first and second runs, before Yoshizawa surged ahead with her penultimate trick, finishing with an overall score of 272.75.
With Yoshizawa and Akama out of reach, Leal’s final run secured her the bronze, sparking celebrations among Brazilian fans as GALA’s Eurodance hit “Freed from Desire” – predating the medalists’ births – played throughout the stadium.
Later, Leal expressed her gratitude, noting the crowd felt like “100% Brazilians.” “It means a lot, not only for me but for my team, for Brazil. We are happy,” she said. “This is for skateboarding.”
Re-reported from the article originally published in CNN.
