TOKYO -- Skateboarding in Japan appears to be enjoying a period of unprecedented popularity, as a boost during the coronavirus pandemic has been accelerated further by the success of the country's skateboarders at the Tokyo Olympics.

       While the skateboarding population was trending upward with the sport's new inclusion to Olympic competition, five Japanese medalists at the Tokyo Games have ignited interest further. Young fans of skateboarders including men's street event champion Yuto Horigome, 22, are flooding into shops and parks. But there are concerns the heightened interest may cause noise problems and traffic trouble.

       "I want to practice a lot and be able to ride in a cool way like Horigome," said elementary school first-grader Makoto Fujiwara, 6, a resident of Tokyo's Chuo Ward, the happy recipient of a new skateboard deck on the afternoon of July 28 at Instant skateboard shop's Odaiba branch in Koto Ward.

       Yuto Horigome smiles after the men's street skateboarding final of the Tokyo Olympics at Ariake Urban Sports Park in the capital's Koto Ward on July 25, 2021. (Mainichi/Takehiko Onishi)

       Inspired by Horigome, Fujiwara just began skateboarding, and participated in an experience session that day. His mother Natsuko said: "I think skateboarding can be enjoyed even as an adult. I hope he'll make many friends."

       According to shop manager Daisuke Ishii, the shop has seen a rapid increase in customers since the afternoon of July 25, when Horigome won gold. Many are families with parents who want their children to try the sport. "I've never seen a reaction like this before."

       "Thanks to Horigome's gold medal, skateboarding is getting greater recognition," he said, adding that daily sales had doubled in the last few days.

       The "Horigome effect" could also be seen at the Murasaki Park Tokyo practice facility and its adjacent shop in Adachi Ward. Manager Koichi Hirooka, 43, said: "Park visitor numbers have obviously grown. More people say they want to take it up as a sport."

       Sawako Hata, 9, is a fourth-grader in elementary school living in Arakawa Ward. She has been skateboarding for two years, and said enthusiastically, "I want to keep practicing and do a big trick someday." Hata said she admires 13-year-old Momiji Nishiya, who won gold in the women's street skateboarding event at the Tokyo Games.

       According to a source close to the All Japan Skateboard Association, Japan's skateboarders increased rapidly after the first coronavirus state of emergency declared in April 2020. Apparently, what sparked the craze was partly that the sport is possible outside even when alone, and rising interest in skateboarding as a new Olympic event. The industry increasingly expects that the Olympics and Horigome's achievement will dispel the sport's "delinquent image."

       Women's street skateboarding gold medalist Momiji Nishiya performs during the Tokyo Olympics preliminary heats at Ariake Urban Sports Park in the capital's Koto Ward on July 26, 2021. (Mainichi/Toshiki Miyama)

       The association's website says 400,000 people in Japan skateboard. Heightened interest during the coronavirus pandemic and from the Olympics will likely push up the figure.

       Meanwhile, there are concerns for the consequences if skateboarder numbers grow. Skateboarding has developed as a street culture where riders use them in cities and on streets. Japan's Road Traffic Act only prohibits riding them on roads with heavy traffic, meaning using them in the streets does not automatically break the law.

       But the general public often considers skateboarding a "nuisance," and there have been several cases of police being called or trouble developing over noise. Though there are apparently some 300 skateboarding parks across Japan, making more of them is an issue.

       "Just as when kick scooters took off, we'll see people who forget their manners during skating's increased popularity," said Shigeru Kawabata, 59-year-old manager of the Murasaki Sports store headquarters near Ueno Station. "Skateboarders' manners will be in question."

       Murasaki Sports cultivates manners by running a school for skateboarders. "We want people to enjoy skateboarding while considering first and foremost how not to upset anyone."

       (Japanese original by Shotaro Kinoshita and Keigo Kawasaki, Tokyo City News Department)

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