Team USA skateboarders call San Diego home
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Team USA skateboarder Bryce Wettstein competes in Shanghai in May. Photo: Fred Lee via Getty Images
Half of the Team USA skateboarders going to the Summer Olympics in Paris this month are from San Diego County or moved here to pursue their professional careers.
Why it matters: The surf and skate culture of San Diego — the birthplace of skateboarding — makes it a breeding ground for greatness.
Fun fact: Carlsbad Skatepark, the state's first such facility, opened in 1976, and the Smithsonian National Museum of American History has a piece of it.
Driving the news: The skateboarders competing for Team USA in park and street events were unveiled in Vista this week.
- Tate Carew, 19, is ranked No. 1 in the world and is eyeing gold in men's park. He grew up skating in Point Loma.
- Gavin Bottger, a 17-year-old world champion from Vista, is ranked third and also will compete in men's park.
- Bryce Wettstein, 20, of Encinitas is ranked eighth in the world. She's looking to medal after finishing sixth in the women's park finals at the 2021 Tokyo Summer Olympics.
- Ruby Lilley, 17, moved to Oceanside to train and is ranked 11th in the world.
- Tom Schaar, 24, who moved to Carlsbad and attended San Dieguito High School, returns to the Olympic team. He's ranked fourth in the world and is known for landing the first-ever 1,080-degree spin at 12 years old.
- Jagger Eaton, 23, moved to San Diego to pursue his skating career. He won bronze in men's street in Tokyo to become the first U.S. Olympic medalist in skateboarding.
- Other team members include Nyjah Huston and Chris Joslin on the men's side, and Paige Heyn, Poe Pinson, Mariah Duran and Minna Stess on the women's side.
Zoom in: Wettstein is among the young athletes shaping the San Diego sports scene.
- She grew up skating at local parks and on a ramp in her family's backyard in Encinitas.
- At 15, she was named to the inaugural U.S. Olympic skateboarding team, and she's the 2019 and 2022 national champion in women's park.
By the numbers: This is the second Olympic Games to include skateboarding.
- In total, 88 athletes will skate — split evenly between men and women.
- 44 will compete in park and the other half in street.
- A dozen skateboarders will represent Team USA — three men and three women in each discipline.
What's next: The athletes will compete in the Olympic street events July 27-28 and in the park events Aug. 6-7 in Paris.