Teen wins Korea's first Asian Games skateboarding gold
After winning South Korea’s first Asian Games skateboarding gold, Kang Jun-i is already looking ahead to the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. The 17-year-old would love another gold, but he has his own goal: invent a trick no one has seen before and put it on display in front of the world.
Speaking at a press conference in Nagoya, Japan a day after winning the men’s street final, Kang said the victory still felt “unreal.” He had slept only two or three hours and received more than 100 congratulatory messages ahead of his birthday on Tuesday.
But going into his final trick in Sunday’s men’s street final, he thought he had blown his chance.
Kang had fallen on his first two attempts at the trick. After the second fall, he recalled running to his coach in tears and asking what to do. His coach told him to calm down and trust himself. Kang then looked into the stands and saw his mother.
“I thought about everything my parents had done for me and told myself, ‘Just go for it,’” he said. When he realized he had won, his first thought was, “Mom, I did it.”
Kang landed the trick on his third and final attempt, earning 92.40 points to bring his total to 180.85. He finished ahead of Japan’s Toa Sasaki and Ginwoo Onodera.
It was Korea's first Asian Games skateboarding gold since the sport joined the program in 2018.
Kang called his gold medal the “biggest turning point” of his life so far, expressing hopes to compete at the Olympics in two years. But winning a gold medal is only part of his ambition.
“I want to invent a more difficult trick of my own and show it to the world,” he said.
South Korean skateboarding coach Shin Jeong-hyuk said Kang’s skills set him apart, calling the gold medal the “start of a new era” for the sport in Korea.
“Kang is already an outstanding skater. I think he can go toe to toe with Japan’s best,” Shin said. “As someone who’s been involved in skateboarding for years, this gold means a lot. It feels like the start of a new era.”
From childhood prodigy to gold medalist
Kang’s gold medal also brought renewed attention to his appearance on a 2019 episode of SBS’ “Gifted Talent Discovery,” where he was introduced as a 10-year-old skateboarding prodigy who could perform more than 130 tricks.
The episode showed how much work went into that ambition.
Kang, who started skateboarding at 8, spent hours traveling to practice, then fell again and again as he tried to master new moves. Asked why he kept trying, Kang — then an elementary schoolkid— said that after so many falls, he felt he might be closer to landing the trick.
When he finished third in a competition that offered a spot at an international event, Kang cried. After the venue emptied, he stayed behind to practice.
That spirit continued seven years later. After falling twice, he tried one more time and landed it to win gold.
Kang’s success does not start with the Asian Games, though.
In 2024, he became the first Korean to win Tampa Am, the world's most prestigious annual amateur street skateboarding competition. He followed that with three golds, a silver and two bronzes at this year’s X Games.
junheee@heraldcorp.com
