Sky Brown: What next for youngest Team GB Olympic medallist and where skateboarder is from

Surfing, horror crashes and a social media megastar – the life and times of Team GB’s youngest-ever Olympic medallist
Britain's Sky Brown reacts during the women's park final during the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Ariake Sports Park Skateboarding in Tokyo on August 04, 2021. (Photo by Loic VENANCE / AFP) (Photo by LOIC VENANCE/AFP via Getty Images)Britain's Sky Brown reacts during the women's park final during the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Ariake Sports Park Skateboarding in Tokyo on August 04, 2021. (Photo by Loic VENANCE / AFP) (Photo by LOIC VENANCE/AFP via Getty Images)
Britain's Sky Brown reacts during the women's park final during the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Ariake Sports Park Skateboarding in Tokyo on August 04, 2021. (Photo by Loic VENANCE / AFP) (Photo by LOIC VENANCE/AFP via Getty Images)

Sky Brown became Britain' s youngest Olympic medallist of all-time with a brilliant bronze in Tokyo.

The Japanese capital was shuddered into life by an early morning earthquake tremor but it was the skateboarding teens who sent shockwaves through these Games.

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Japan's Sakura Yosozumi and Kokona Hiraki, aged 19 and 12, took gold and silver and Brown - 13 years and 23 days - held her nerve to complete the podium.

Britain's Sky Brown competes in the women's park final during the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Ariake Sports Park Skateboarding in Tokyo on August 04, 2021. (Photo by Lionel BONAVENTURE / AFP) (Photo by LIONEL BONAVENTURE/AFP via Getty Images)Britain's Sky Brown competes in the women's park final during the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Ariake Sports Park Skateboarding in Tokyo on August 04, 2021. (Photo by Lionel BONAVENTURE / AFP) (Photo by LIONEL BONAVENTURE/AFP via Getty Images)
Britain's Sky Brown competes in the women's park final during the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Ariake Sports Park Skateboarding in Tokyo on August 04, 2021. (Photo by Lionel BONAVENTURE / AFP) (Photo by LIONEL BONAVENTURE/AFP via Getty Images)

Cecilia Colledge, who won figure skating silver aged 15 years and 97 days in 1936, was previous Britain's youngest Olympic medallist, with swimmer Sarah Harcastle just a few days older when she won silver and bronze at the 1984 Games in Los Angeles.

Three runs decided the final, with the best score counting. Brown twice fell attempting her signature trip, a Kickflip Indy, but nailed it at the third and final time of asking, after encouraging words from coach and father Stewart.

“My dad told me 'it’s just a contest, if you fall it doesn’t define you'. I mean honestly that made me feel better," she said.

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“Sakura (Yosozumi – gold medallist) said ‘you’ve got it Sky, I know you’re going to make it’.,

Sky Brown of Team Great Britain  reacts with her father Stuart Brown after winning the Bronze medal during the Women's Skateboarding Park Finals.Sky Brown of Team Great Britain  reacts with her father Stuart Brown after winning the Bronze medal during the Women's Skateboarding Park Finals.
Sky Brown of Team Great Britain reacts with her father Stuart Brown after winning the Bronze medal during the Women's Skateboarding Park Finals.

“I was a little nervous but I’m happy to be here and honestly I just wanted to land my trick. I didn’t really care what place I got, I wanted to land my trick.

“I’m so stoked, I can’t believe it. I'm so happy to be on the podium with these guys, it's just insane. The medal feels unreal, it’s like a dream. I can’t wait to show it to my family and friends."

Where is Sky Brown from?

Sky Brown was born in Miyazaki, Japan on 7th July 2008. Her mother, Mieko, is Japanese and her father, Stu, is British.

Sky Brown of Team Great Britain poses with her bronze medal after the Women's Skateboarding Park Finals.Sky Brown of Team Great Britain poses with her bronze medal after the Women's Skateboarding Park Finals.
Sky Brown of Team Great Britain poses with her bronze medal after the Women's Skateboarding Park Finals.
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Brown splits her time between her home in California and Japan and qualifies for Team GB courtesy of her British father, who lived in the United States for several years before moving to Japan.

Her grandparents watched from their home in the New Forest.

“I did speak to my mum and my brother and my mum was crying," added Brown.

“I’m so excited to see my brother (Ocean). He really gets me pumped up when I’m in a contest, he screams and shouts, I really wish he was here.”

Lucky to be alive

Just over a year ago, Brown was lying in intensive care, her skull fractured in multiple places, her left arm broken, her fingers busted with serious lacerations to both her stomach and lungs

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Both her parents asked her to stop but she insists the accident only fuelled her Olympic ambitions, winning the prestigious X Games title just weeks before arriving here.

“I honestly feel that accident made me stronger," she said.

"That accident was pretty bad. It was a hard time for my parents and a hard time for a lot of people and coming back and getting the bronze is really cool."

What’s next for Sky Brown?

Brown is as passionate about surfing as she is about skateboarding - and hinted she may tackle the double in three years.

“I really hope so. I’m definitely going to try surfing,” she said.

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However, dad Stu insisted the first job would be to keep this high-flying teen’s feet on the ground, no easy task.

With over a million followers on both Instagram and TikTok, Brown is a sporting phenomenon and a marketing dream. She's already released her first book and starred in advertising campaigns alongside sporting A-listers Megan Rapinoe and Serena Williams.

She's also a TV star - winning the American junior version of Strictly, aged 11, and starring in a Discovery documentary, Reaching The Sky.

"She's straight back to school and will do the normal things that families do," he said. "We'll take her off social media for a little while.

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“Her grandparents were watching in the New Forest. She misses Japan, we have a home here and it's really hard at the moment to get in and out.

"I'm not sure about surfing in Paris, she loves the sport. It'll be up to her by then, she'll be 16 and it's hard enough now."

No one does more to support our Olympic and Paralympic athletes than National Lottery players, who raise around £36 million each week for good causes including elite and grassroots sport. Discover more about how playing The National Lottery supports Team GB’s athletes by visiting www.national-lottery.co.uk/tokyo2020 and get involved by using the hashtags: #TNLAthletes #MakeAmazingHappen

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