Matt Berger rides a rail on his skateboard at the 2021 Street Skateboarding World Championships. (World Skate/Bryce Kanights)
A Kamloops native is part of Canada’s first Olympic skateboard team.
Matt Berger is one of three people who will represent Canada when skateboarding makes its debut at the 2020 Tokyo Games next month.
“Representing the country and the people that have shaped me into who I am and proud to be, its was a no-brainer,” he said on NL Newsday back on March 25.
“Of course, I’m going to do the best I can and try to represent where I’m from.”
Berger will be joined by Andy Anderson of White Rock and Micky Papa of Vancouver.
The trio qualified based on their performances throughout the World Skate Qualification Tour that began in London, England in May 2019. They finalized their rankings at the Dew Tour in Des Moines, Iowa, last month and at the Street Skateboard World Championships held in Rome, Italy this month.
“The announcement of Canada’s first Olympic Skateboard team is a welcomed milestone in the rich history of skateboarding in our country,” Canada Skateboard president Ben Stoddard said, in a release.
Skateboarding at the Olympics will feature 80 athletes from 24 countries. Men and women will each compete in park and street events and each event will include 20 competitors.
Berger and Papa are ranked 10 and 21 respectively in the full street world rankings, while Anderson sits at number 30 in park.
The men’s street event takes place on July 25, while the men’s park event is on August 5.
For most of his life, being an Olympian wasn’t on Matt Berger’s radar.
Now, he’s 1 of 3 #TeamCanada Olympic skateboarders 🙌
More on how @mattberger_ hopes the inclusion of 🛹 in the Olympics will have a positive impact on the next gen of 🇨🇦 skateboarders ⤵️@CanSkateboard
— Team Canada (@TeamCanada) June 11, 2021
Introducing the 3️⃣ #TeamCanada athletes that will form Canada’s first ever Olympic skateboarding team 🔥🤙
• Andy Anderson
• Matt Berger
• Micky PapaWe are all Team Canada, from existing to new Olympic sports 🙌
🛹 into the details ➡️ https://t.co/vfIYVv0gTV pic.twitter.com/dd65lnTeJC
— Team Canada (@TeamCanada) June 11, 2021
