Alana Smith (skateboarder)
Alana Smith (born October 20, 2000) is an American professional skateboarder from Mesa, Arizona.[2][3] They are goofy-footed.[4]
Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||
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Nationality | American | ||||||||||||||||||||
Born | Mesa, Arizona, US | October 20, 2000||||||||||||||||||||
Occupation | Professional skateboarder | ||||||||||||||||||||
Sport | |||||||||||||||||||||
Country | United States | ||||||||||||||||||||
Sport | Skateboarding | ||||||||||||||||||||
Position | Goofy-footed | ||||||||||||||||||||
Rank | 19th (Street; July 2021)[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||
Event(s) | Street, park | ||||||||||||||||||||
Pro tour(s) | Dew Tour Street League Skateboarding | ||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Skateboarding career
In 2013, at the age of 12, Smith landed a 540 McTwist and became the youngest medalist in X Games history when they won silver in the women's park event at the X Games Barcelona.[5][3][6]
They finished first in the Girls Combi Pool Classic at the World Cup of Skateboarding in 2015.[6][7][8][9]
In 2016, Smith and Nora Vasconcellos joined the skate team of the Eugene, Oregon boardshop Tactics, as the brand's female ambassadors.[10]
In 2021, Smith competed in the women's street skateboarding event at the 2020 Summer Olympics, finishing in last place out of the 20 competitors at the heat stage.[11] In so doing, Smith became the first ever openly non-binary athlete to compete at the Olympics and had the pronouns "they/them" inscribed on their skateboard.[12] However, a number of sports presenters misgendered Smith during coverage of the event, including BBC Sport commentators and commentators on an international feed that was broadcast on NBC Sports.[13][14][15][5][16]
Personal life
Smith is bisexual and non-binary, using they/them pronouns.[5][12] Other than skateboarding, Smith’s other hobbies include music, film, photography, and camping.[17] In 2021, after the Tokyo games, Smith became involved with a corporate- and athletic- coaching company Exos which focuses on creating safe space skate sessions.[18] Smith has expressed how skateboarding has helped them in dark places and wants to help others find the love of the sport that has helped them keep going.[19][16] Smith was asked why they made their coming out and sexual identity public during an ESPN interview and shared that they wanted to show the world a side of them that is very vulnerable and sensitive while representing and helping kids that needed a support system. They also had started binding their chest in 2016 and received top surgery the following year.[20][21]
References
- "Olympic World Skateboarding Rankings – Street, Female". World Skate. June 30, 2021. Archived from the original on July 27, 2021. Retrieved July 26, 2021.
- Dwyer, Kate (September 23, 2015). "This 14-Year-Old Proves Skateboarding is a Girl's Sport". Teen Vogue. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
- Harwood, Erika (September 26, 2019). "5 Female Skateboarders Everyone Will be Talking About in 2020". ELLE. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
- "Alana Smith athlete biography". X Games. Archived from the original on August 12, 2022. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
- Yurcaba, Jo (July 27, 2021). "Unapologetically themself: Nonbinary Olympian shares powerful message". NBC News. Archived from the original on July 27, 2021. Retrieved May 24, 2023.
- "Alana Smith - Women's Street". USA Skateboarding. July 15, 2021. Archived from the original on July 28, 2021. Retrieved May 24, 2023.
- Khurshudyan, Isabelle (August 1, 2013). "Alana Smith blurs gender lines in skateboarding". ESPN. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
- "Alana Smith (they/them)". XSM Global. Archived from the original on August 10, 2020. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
- Waldman, Celia (June 3, 2016). "X Games Austin 2016 Q&A: Alana Smith". SI Kids. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
- Blakely, Brian (August 12, 2016). "Tactics Welcomes Alana Smith and Nora Vasconcellos". Transworld Skateboarding. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
- "Tokyo 2020 – Skateboarding, Women's Street (Prelims) – Heat Results" (PDF). Olympics.com. July 26, 2021. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 26, 2021. Retrieved August 2, 2021.
- Raza-Sheikh, Zoya (July 26, 2021). "Non-binary Olympic athlete continuously misgendered in sporting commentary". Gay Times. Retrieved August 2, 2021.
- Bell, Brian C (July 27, 2021). "The Olympics and NBC failed Alana Smith and the non-binary community". Outsports. Archived from the original on July 26, 2021. Retrieved May 24, 2023.
- Padgett, Donald (July 27, 2021). "Nonbinary Olympic Skateboarder Alana Smith Was Misgendered on TV". Out. Retrieved August 2, 2021.
- Parsons, Vic (July 27, 2021). "Non-binary skateboarder makes Olympics history – and is misgendered while doing it". PinkNews. Retrieved August 2, 2021.
- Hendricks, Jaclyn (July 28, 2021). "Non-binary Skateboarder Alana Smith Posts a Powerful Message After Competing at Tokyo Olympics". Shape. Archived from the original on July 29, 2021. Retrieved May 24, 2023.
- "Alana Smith - Skateboarding". Team USA. Archived from the original on July 23, 2021. Retrieved May 24, 2023.
- "Olympic skateboarder Alana Smith on mental health, chosen family and being nonbinary: 'I just felt like I was in the middle'". Yahoo Life. Retrieved March 7, 2023.
- "Olympic skateboarder Alana Smith on mental health, chosen family and being nonbinary: 'I just felt like I was in the middle'". Yahoo Life. Retrieved March 7, 2023.
- "'We're out here, you're not alone': USA skateboarder Alana Smith tells their coming out story". ESPN.com. October 11, 2021. Retrieved March 7, 2023.
- "Olympic skateboarder Alana Smith on mental health, chosen family and being nonbinary: 'I just felt like I was in the middle'". Yahoo Life. Retrieved March 7, 2023.
External links
- Alana Smith at Olympedia
- Alana Smith at The Boardr
- Alana Smith at the X Games (archived)