After hedging their bets with easier runs on a slippery ramp and street course on Saturday, the in-line skaters, skateboarders and BMX bikers at the Nutrilite Extreme Challenge in Taipei came out yesterday with their full battery of tricks for the event's finals.
After a rain delay, the amateur competition kicked off in the early afternoon with the in-line skating in the street arena.
Two local favorites, Chang Hung-yi (章弘毅) and Jacky Chen (陳奇), battled for first place, with Chang ultimately coming out on top with some aggressive jumps and rail grinds.
Close behind Chang were Chen in second place and Johnny Chou (
The top three amateur skaters had a chance yesterday to compete for a total of US$10,000 in prize money against seven world ranked professional skaters who had come from abroad for the competition.
The most feared of the visiting pros were the Japanese brothers Eito Yasutoko and Takeshi Yasutoko, who are currently ranked first and second in the half-pipe category on the Aggressive Skaters Association tour.
The five other pros are all ranked in the top 25 in the world in both the street and half-pipe events.
The Yasutoko brothers displayed their dominance on the half pipe once again in the pro event.
The professional half-pipe and street competitions were judged for the best single trick successfully completed -- a format which organizers hoped would thrill crowds and push competitors to attempt more daring maneuvers.
Eito Yasutoko, the elder of the brothers at 18, stunned the crowd and took the US$2,500 first prize with a flawless triple front spin.
His little brother Takeshi, 15, followed up for second place with triple McTwist, which is a spin with an axial twist.
In third was Shawn Robertson, who pulled off a daredevil stall on the handrail of the 3.6m-tall half-pipe's top deck before doing a dangerous 1800 spin and landing backwards into the ramp.
In the professional street event, Ryan Dawes grabbed the US$2,500 first place prize, followed by Sven Boekhorst and Shawn Robertson.
"There is definitely a line in the skill level between the pros and the local skaters.
"But I think with time, some of these guys will be out there competing on an even level," said Azikiwee Anderson, head judge for the competition.
Surprising many in the amateur skateboarding event, Canadian David Lerington upstaged Huang Chun-chin (黃俊欽) and Huang Yao-te (黃耀德), two brothers who have taken the top spots on the podium at previous events.
Yesterday was obviously not their day and in the final judging Lerington placed first, followed by Huang Chun-chin in second and Huang Po-hsin (
In the amateur BMX street competition, Liao Wu-hsiung (
The event, while being a serious competition for the skaters and bikers, was also an occasion for local competitors to meet professionals in the sport and for the athletes to show off their skills to the public at the venue in front of the New York New York shopping mall.
Whether the event would encourage more people to strap on some skates, jump on a board or hop on a BMX bike is hard to guess, as many in the stands covered their eyes in fear and muttered, "I don't dare watch!"
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