Para athlete Kevin Almazan, Cindy Lou Serna and the all-women SkateMunchkins, and pro talent Justin Estenzo hope to help Philippine skateboarding reach new heights
MANILA, Philippines – When Margielyn Didal’s international skateboarding success turned her into a Philippine sports star, the local skate scene couldn’t be any more proud.
Not only did she give the sport a huge boost, but she also put a spotlight on the hard work, time, and patience that skateboarding demands.
It’s no longer seen as just a fun street hobby — or even a nuisance to some — as skateboarding can actually bring international glory to the country.
So for passionate skateboarders like para athlete Kevin Almazan, Cindy Lou Serna and the all-women SkateMunchkins, and pro talent Justin Estenzo, they hope to give the sport a boost any way they can.
Kevin Almazan
As a differently abled athlete, Almazan hopes to show there’s still a lot he can do.
“Do not lose hope,” said Almazan in Filipino.
For the 18-year-old skater, taking the challenge on the ramp also helps bring out the fun side of the sport.
“Skateboarding… allows us to bring joy to the people,” Almazan said. “You can be happy in skateboarding and meet a lot of people too.”
A native of Calamba, Laguna, Almazan discovered his passion for skateboarding when he was 15 years old.
It’s a curiosity that led him to compete in local and international tournaments, and eventually, helped him financially.
“I can provide for my family through skateboarding, especially if I win in competitions,” said Almazan.
Skateboarding, he said, is also an avenue to freely express one’s self without judgment and constraints.
“Do not believe those people who tell you that if you’re a skateboarder, you tend to be a criminal. It’s not true,” Almazan said.
“Skateboarding is like a form of self-expression,” he said during the Vans’ Go-Skateboarding Day event.
Cindy Lou Serna and the SkateMunchkins
Didal’s stardom also helped flip a male-dominated skateboarding scene to a more gender-inclusive community.
So national athletes like Serna hope to help sustain it with groups like the SkateMunchkins, an all-women crew hoping to inspire and encourage young girls to take up the sport.
Roanne Boleche, the group’s founder and manager, also looks back on how hard it was to promote the sport initially.
“Most of the time, they thought that skateboarding was only for men and not meant to be done by women,” she said in Filipino.
“Margielyn is one of the people who paved the way to inspire and help the women skate community to grow.”
The SkateMunchkins, founded by four women who skated the streets of Mendiola in Manila, hope the sport encourages women to be more confident.
And seeing the current scene, they see a “bright” future for many rising female talents.
Justin Estenzo
For Estenzo, a 22-year-old professional skateboarder, exposing young kids to the sport remains important.
That’s how he started, after all, when he got amused by the jumps and flips of skateboarders that included his brother and cousin.
“I was 15 years old when I started skating, and because they (family) encouraged me to skate,” said Estenzo. “I felt happy because a lot of people were into it… I made a lot of friends everywhere.”
Estenzo said he’s glad to see the sport’s growth in recent years.
“The kids, I am actually glad because these kids [who are now skateboarding] already began at an early age, not like us who started around 15 years old,” he said.
“But these young people, they can easily learn while they are young… it is easy to teach them, and it’s certainly easy to train them for competitions.
As a pro who represents the country in local and international tournaments, Estenzo thinks the next generation of Filipino skateboarders looks even more promising.
“I feel very happy to represent the country because I get to show the next generation what they can do, that they should also accomplish what we have done, and that all of them can do even better,” he said.
“Because this generation is different… These young people are already great. They are brave.” – Rappler.com
Eugero Vincent Liberato, Niño Dominic Ronquillo, and Jorge Marion Dionisio are Rappler interns.
