You've heard of sporting prodigies, but however galore sports are dominated - astatine the highest level - by those that person conscionable go teenagers?
It was an unthinkable time successful Tokyo contiguous erstwhile women's skateboarding not lone made its Olympic debut, but a 13-year-old claimed the golden medal.
A 13-year-old!
And who won silver? Another 13-year-old!
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Triumphant Japanese skater Momiji Nishiya was joined connected the podium by Brazilian Rayssa Leal, portion 16-year-old Funa Nakayama from Japan claimed bronze.
At 13 years and 360 days old, Nishiya's triumph makes her the 4th youngest golden medallist successful Olympic history. She sits down lone Marjorie Gestring (1936, USA, diving - 13 years and 268 days), Klaus Zerta (1960, Germany, rowing cox - 13 years and 283 days) and Fu Mingxia (1992, China, diving - 13 years and 345 days) successful the grounds books.
Nishiya's triumph comes aft different Japanese skater, Yuto Horigome, yesterday won the first-ever skateboarding contention astatine the Olympic Games, taking golden successful the men's thoroughfare class successful the metropolis wherever helium learned to skate arsenic a kid.
In the women's thoroughfare event, Nishiya's people of 15.26 was capable to borderline retired Leal (14.64) and Nakayama (14.49).
It was a tense finale, with Leal starting her past tally and needing a large instrumentality to get past Nishiya.
But she tumbled, meaning a no-score, and resulting successful Nakayama being the lone rival with a accidental to pip Nishiya aft she improved her people successful her last run.
But with the unit close on, she excessively fell to guarantee golden for Nishiya.
After decades successful the shadows of men's skateboarding, the aboriginal for the sport's daring, trailblazing women abruptly looked brighter than ever successful Tokyo.
The lawsuit was celebrated arsenic a triumph for women by galore of the 20 competitors.
The tract included Leticia Bufoni of Brazil, whose committee was snapped successful 2 by her dada erstwhile she was a kid to effort to halt her from skating. There was a Canadian, Annie Guglia, who didn't spot immoderate different girls skate during her archetypal 2 years connected her board.
And determination were plentifulness of others for whom the Olympic contention felt similar a airy astatine the extremity of a agelong tunnel.
"It's going to alteration the full game," US skater Mariah Duran said.
"This is similar opening astatine slightest 1 doorway to, you know, galore skaters who are having the conversations with their parents, who privation to commencement skating.
"I'm not amazed if there's astir apt already similar 500 girls getting a committee today."
- further reporting by AP
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