Street skateboarding’s growth as a mainstream professional competition could be seen on full display at Tokyo’s Ariake Arena on Saturday, with Street League Skateboarding (SLS) holding court in Japan for the first time in its 13-year history.
Founded in 2010 by former professional skateboarder Rob Dyrdek, SLS offers the biggest competitive purses in the sport. A total of $250,000 is on offer at each stop on the tour, which this season includes stops in Chicago, Tokyo and Sydney, with the location of the final to be announced at a later date.
Reigning Olympic street champion Yuto Horigome dominated the men’s final after escaping from the day’s most competitive qualifying heat, with each of his four scores coming in above nine points for a total of 37.2.