US Olympic skating superstar Jagger Eaton on listening to classical jazz while he trains, breaking records at 11 years old – and why NOBODY will be ‘on his level’ at the Paris Games

Last month, on a sunny day in New York City’s East Village, skaters flocked to the famous blacktop in Tompkins Square Park, as they often do.

Among them was world champion Jagger Eaton.

In another sport, with the Paris Olympics fast approaching, such an informal outing could be seen as a distraction. Eaton sees it as the exact opposite of his calling.

“I mean, it’s so important to just get out there and skate,” he told Mail Sport exclusively at the Team USA media summit. “That’s exactly why you stop at a basketball court and everyone shoots hoops together.

‘It’s just that atmosphere… you don’t know anyone there. But everyone skates. And all of a sudden, twenty minutes later, you’ve got five new homies, and you’re all vibing and skating on a flat bar and talking. And it’s such a special environment, especially here in New York.”

Of course, his Olympic training involved much more than the kind of light-hearted skate park trips that initially made him fall in love with the sport. The 2021 Olympic street bronze medalist told reporters earlier in the day that this final year of work had “taken its toll.”

But Eaton’s skate park journey — and it wasn’t his first time at Tompkins — shows a kind of poise that could be considered unique among elite athletes, at least outside of skating.

The 23-year-old, the son of competitive gymnasts (his mother, Shelly, was on the USA Gymnastics team from 1985 to 1989), has no shortage of discipline. He’s changed his diet, gotten off social media and even shrunk his social circle since the last Olympics.

‘They always told me how gnarly the [qualifying] process,” he said of his parents.

But there is also personality in his excellence. While in Ralph Lauren’s latest collection for Team USA, he explains how he looks up to athletes with “steeze” (a slang term that loosely means style) and reveals how an eclectic mix of Playboi Carti, classic jazz and Metallica fueled his skate runs soundtrackt. . In an age of moisture-wicking fabrics and polyesters, he opts for a plain white T-shirt and jeans as his favorite practice outfit.

Perhaps it’s no wonder that Eaton’s skating straddles two worlds as he attempts to qualify for the Olympics in both the park and street categories – something no one has done since the sport debuted at the Olympics in Tokyo.

Park, which Eaton failed to qualify for in 2021 with a broken ankle, sees skaters attempting to conquer big bowls and bends with a series of high-flying tricks. Street competitions are more similar to the basic spirit of the sport, as skaters are tasked with impressing judges on steps, rails and benches.

Earlier this month, Eaton took a huge double step in earning the right to do both in Paris when he won the street competition and finished third on the park at the Olympic Qualifier Series in Shanghai, placing him at No. 2 in the world in both matches. disciplines.

The second OQS event in Budapest still awaits in June (and will be combined with his world rankings), but Eaton’s ambitious goal is almost complete. He certainly wasn’t lacking in confidence in April.

“There’s no one really doing it at my level,” he said of his dual-threat ability. ‘And there is currently no one who could do that.

‘I don’t sit here with false modesty. I’m just sitting here being real because, you know, it’s the truth. I have some kind of responsibility to pave the way for children to see what is possible. And I’m grateful to have that opportunity.”

Eaton, to use his words, has been paving the way for quite some time.

At the age of nine he was already sponsored by Red Bull. At the age of 11, he became the youngest person ever to compete in the X Games (a record that has since been broken).

While that roaring start brought fame and the chance to film something like that street videos that can elevate a skater to cult hero status, Eaton has certainly chosen his path in the skate world.

Not all skaters choose to participate. Names like Tyshawn Jones, two-time Thrasher Skater of the Year, have eschewed Olympic and X Games medals for sponsorships and full edits. Jones in particular has embedded himself in the fashion world thanks to his relationship with streetwear and skateboard brand Supreme.

Eaton has nothing against that, but he wanted more.

“For me, I think what happened was I saw so much success and health come from competitive sports at a young age. Just watching football, basketball and baseball,” he says.

“And not only that, like when I saw skateboarding, I saw Nyjah [Huston]I saw [Ryan] Sheckler, I saw all these great guys that I looked up to, having so much success in the league. I’m like, I want that. No, I want to compete in front of an audience. But at the same time I always had the feeling: I want something more than that. I want to compete for more than myself. I want to fight for my country, you know what I mean?’

Eaton isn’t afraid to reflect on his position in the sport, and ponder whether he can match the impact of skating legends like Tony Hawk, Sheckler and the still-active Huston. He is inspired by all-timers like Michael Jordan, Derek Jeter and also the late Kobe Bryant.

“Legacy definitely drives me,” he says. ‘I definitely want to leave this sport better than when I came here. I think that’s the goal.’

The 23-year-old, already a seven-time X Games medalist, is certainly concerned about winning, as well as the responsibility of producing for Team USA (assuming he qualifies).

But there are the softer, perhaps more subdued influences that color his skating and (literally) also spin his wheels. He also goes for style points.

‘Culturally, skateboarding is very well matched. I can’t walk outside and skate unless I know what I’m wearing,” he says, after mentioning earlier in the day how he cuts his T-shirts to hang above his belt — a lesson from his younger brother.

‘Everything I do every day affects how my skating will be that day. You know what I’m wearing, what I’m listening to, what my vibe is, who I’m skating with, where I’m skating, it all comes together. And it is really something special. Skateboarding is always like a journey, every day.

The Arizona native who looked up to Jordan, having “grown up on” the sounds of Tupac Shakur and the Notorious B.I.G., had no shortage of influences on that journey to this point.

But now that Eaton is moving closer to Paris, it is are approach that will be emulated by the next generation.

It’s safe to say he’s found his own way.

‘I can’t look at it the same. “I can’t look at it the way the street boys looked at it, I can’t look at it the way the park looked at it,” he says.

“I have to find a way to portray what I do in a way that I can pave the way for the youth to see it the way I see it.”