By Samantha Wong

The field of skateboarders for the 2024 Paris Olympics is dominated by heavy hitters from the United States, Japan and Australia. And with nearly all of the medalists from the Tokyo Olympics returning and young talent emerging over the past three years, there will be fierce competition when the first skateboarding events start July 27.

Like in Tokyo, the majority of athletes competing in Paris are teenagers, including 11-year-old park skateboarder Zheng Haohao, the youngest athlete at these Games. The events aren’t exclusive to teens, though. Park skateboarder Andy Macdonald will be competing for Great Britain a week after turning 51.

Here’s who to watch across all four Olympic skateboarding contests.

STREAM: Men’s street preliminary round

Men’s street: Redemption for Tokyo

The men’s street event, which returns all three medalists from the Tokyo Olympics, may be the stiffest skateboarding competition in Paris.

Japan’s talent pool is staggering, with half of the top 10 men’s street skaters being Japanese. This made it a feat in itself for Ginwoo Onodera, Sora Shirai, and defending Olympic gold medalist Yuto Horigome to sweep the Olympic Qualifier Series (OQS) event in Budapest last month and claim Japan’s three qualification spots.

Horigome and American Nyjah Huston were the leading gold medal favorites in Tokyo and are vying for a podium spot once more in Paris. Horigome may have won the OQS event in Budapest, but Huston has an equally impressive track record. He won both street events at X Games Ventura last month.

Shirai is hungry for redemption after placing ninth and missing the final in Tokyo. “Paris is the only place I can get payback,” he told Olympics.com. He’s set the stage for success by winning the 2023 World Street Championships in Tokyo.

Onodera also shouldn’t be overlooked. The 14-year-old skater has made a name for himself on the competition circuit and recently placed second at both OQS events held this year.

American Jagger Eaton won bronze at the Tokyo Games on a broken ankle. With a healed ankle and a recent win at the OQS event in Shanghai, Eaton is another podium threat for the U.S.

Chris Joslin, 28, will be the third member of the U.S. team in men’s skateboard park.

Men’s park: Possible American sweep?

Team USA has the potential to sweep the podium in men’s park, as Americans Tate Carew, Gavin Bottger and Tom Schaar are all ranked within the top four park skaters in the world.

The main person who could disrupt these plans? Australian Keegan Palmer, who won gold in Tokyo and at X Games Ventura in June.

Brazilian Pedro Barros is also in contention for a medal. He was the Tokyo Olympic silver medalist and placed third at X Games Ventura last month.

Macdonald, the oldest park athlete in Paris, has been a skateboarding mainstay since before some of his competitors were born.

“I was already at the skatepark when these kids showed up and I was literally teaching them how to drop in for the first time,” Macdonald said. Although it’s a longshot for him to finish on the podium, Macdonald said that qualifying for the Olympics was like winning a medal for him. “All the stars had to align.”

SEE MORE: Tom Schaar’s clutch run lands him on U.S. Olympic skate team

WATCH: Japan’s Yoshizawa dominates women’s skateboard street final

ting is about,” Stess said.

Source: wralsportsfan.com