BARRATT Jordyn

Preferred stance
Regular (theboardr.com, 01 Jan 2021)

General
POSITIVE POSTPONEMENT
She saw the postponement of the Olympic Games in Tokyo as an opportunity to take a break, mentally and physically, from skateboarding and rediscover her love for the sport. She spent time surfing during the COVID-19 pandemic when skateparks were closed. "Looking back on the year [2020], I personally think I made a really positive choice for my own self to be able to take a step back and stop for a second and learn how to re-love [skateboarding]. It seemed like so many competitions were happening for so long that I never really had a solid break to, first of all, rest and get my body back to 100%. And second of all, it was a huge positive for me to take that break mentally. It was a crazy year but just to be able to take a step back and pause for a second and reload my brain basically, it was very needed and I'm really thankful I was able to do that. I'm very lucky." (forbes.com, 19 May 2021)

FROM HAWAII TO CALIFORNIA
She grew up surfing in Hawaii and skating at the Banzai Skatepark in Pupukea. At age 14 she moved with her mother from Haleiwa, HI, to Encinitas, CA, where she began to focus on skateboarding. She was also captain of her school's surf team at San Deguito Academy in Encinitas, CA. "I started surfing when I was around three or four. Living on the North Shore of Oahu was awesome and everyone started surfing young. It was a culture shock [moving from Hawaii to California]. I grew up on the North Shore in a really small town, where everybody knows everybody, and luckily we moved to a pretty small surf town that actually has a lot of Hawaii connections, but the biggest shock was going to high school. When I started skateboarding, there were some local contests on the island that my friends entered, so I did, too. It was fun in the beginning because we got lots of goody bags. Then it was fun because I started beating the boys. I didn't ever think it would lead to skating at the professional level, but eventually I started entering bigger contests. I realised I liked being competitive and wanted to skate better. I realised I loved being in contests. I like the sounds of the crowd cheering and I like the feel of skating my best in front of people." (forbes.com, 19 May 2021; jackalope.tribu.co, 02 Nov 2020; pressroom.toyota.com, 01 Jan 2021; hawaiimagazine.com, 16 Jul 2019; sandiegotribune.com, 30 Jul 2017)

SKATEBOARDING AT THE OLYMPICS
She hopes that skateboarding at the Olympic Games will encourage more young girls to take up the sport. She says she was inspired to compete at the Olympic Games by watching her friend, US snowboarder Chloe Kim, competing at the 2018 Olympic Winter Games in Pyeongchang. "[Seeing Chloe Kim at the 2018 Olympic Winter Games] was one of the coolest things ever. It definitely sparked something in me. It is the biggest stage in the world. Being an Olympian, now that it is our possibility, is crazy to me. I think [the 2020 Games] will be awesome for skating because it has brought such a wider audience. Skateboarding has a not-so-great reputation with some people and I think the Olympics will make it more legit in some people's minds. I was happy, too, because I know that in the Olympics, everything has to be equal for men and women, so we all get a fair shot and fair treatment. I think this will open the doors for female skateboarders in a lot of ways. I know how it is to be a young girl and want to skate with another girl and want to look up to someone. It's a huge honour to meet young girls and watch them grow up and see how far they've come. [Inspiring other female skaters] a huge part of all of it for me." (forbes.com, 19 May 2021; sandiegotribune.com, 30 Jul 2017; sportsengine.com, 08 Jun 2021)