Meet the Female Skateboarders on Tony Hawk's New Video Game
Talking Sexism, Perseverance, and More With 3 Female Skateboarders on Tony Hawk's New Video Game
4
Above: Nishimura after winning the Street League Skateboarding World Championship in January 2019
POPSUGAR: What's the proudest moment of your skateboarding career thus far?
Nishimura: For me, it was winning the World Championship in Brazil.
Steamer: One time, probably in 2004, I was this girl's Make-A-Wish. Her dying wish was to meet me. I met her, her friend, and her mom [at the x Games], and I think they expected just to say hi and me sign a couple autographs and then be on their way, but I was actually with my sister, who has since passed away of a terminal illness. At the time, we were all hanging out, and they were like, "OK, nice to meet you." And I was like, "Whoa, whoa, whoa. Where are you going?" And I got their phone number and I hung out with them all weekend, and we got them passes to the athlete lounge . . . We actually were pen pals. I pen palled with her for a couple years after that, and then my sister actually pen palled with her longer than I did.
Armanto: I would say my proudest moment was when I turned pro and I also at the same time got the cover of Thrasher [magazine]. I just felt like growing up, I always thought it'd be cool to skateboard as a living. But at the time, there weren't other women or females doing that and making a living just off skating. A lot of other women in skateboarding, they had jobs on the side. When that day happened, it was like the idea that you can just skateboard for a living, it felt solidified for me. And it kind of felt like a dream come true. It was validation for me — just getting my name on a board and also getting the cover Thrasher. In skateboarding, those are two monumental moments, and I just happened to have them at the same time.