Raven Tershy walks away with Skateboard Park gold medal – X Games 17 update
The X Games 17 action continued with the finals of the Skateboard Park finals on Thursday, July 28, at Event Deck at L.A Live in Los Angeles. Making his debut in X Games, the 18-year-old Raven Tershy came up with an exceptional performance in the finals
to prevail over a field of renowned skaters and claim the gold medal.
Defending champion Pedro Barros barely missed out on victory and had to settle for silver medal, while Ben Hatchell rounded out the podium to take home the bronze.
With a field consisting of the likes of Andy Macdonald, Barros and other intimidating skaters, it was truly an accomplishment for the Santa Cruz-resident, Tershy, to hold his nerve and come up with consistent performances to make his way to the top.
Tershy finished fourth in the elimination round and led Round 1 of the event to make his way into the finals to compete with Barros, Hatchell, Omar Hassan and Kevin Kowalski for top honours.
The 18-year-old had already shown his park prowess during the 2011 Copehagen Pro Bowl last month and his performance during the finals on the opening night of X Games 17 simply served to refresh the memory. Skating fast lines and executing huge transfers
over the step-up gap on the course are just some of the highlights of his runs.
Despite a minor blunder in the last minute of his final run, Tershy managed to secure the highest place on the podium after finishing with a score of 82 points.
Talking to a reporter after the contest, the gold medallist said, “I had no idea I'd already won. Everybody was ripping. I'm stoked. I wasn't expecting this. It was a great time.”
The 16-year-old Brazilian sensation, Barros threw down sensational runs during the final, pulling off variations of 540s and exhibiting great speed and style, in an attempt to defend his title. However, he finished with a total score of 81, losing gold by
just one point.
The 21-year-old Hatchell came up with a 39 and 36-point run to finish with a total of 75 points and clinch bronze medal. He seemed pleased with the result and expressed his desire to go all the way to the top next year.
Hassan and Kowalski missed out on the podium after finishing in fourth and fifth place respectively.
The first night of his X Games appearance turned out to be magical for the young Tershy, something that he would not only be savouring for a long time, but also craving to relive next year. One can only expect great stuff from the Santa Cruz-resident in
the days to come.
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