Yasutoko Soars Into First

 

It looked like some of the skaters in Inline finals at the Action Sports USA Championships had indulged a bit too much at Chili’s the night before the contest, as complete runs were scarce. Almost every skater had trouble staying on their feet during the first run, except of course, Takeshi Yasutoko, who threw down the untouchable score of 95.25 his first time out. Top ranked American Marc Englehart also had a solid first run, but his score fell short by nearly 5 points. In his second run, Englehart had a minor bobble, and aborted mission, as there was no way he could top Yasutoko with anything less than a perfect run, and had to settle for silver. Holland’s Sven Boekhorst rounded out the podium.

 

After today’s competition, there is really no question why the Japanese sensation is ranked number one in the world (not that there ever was.) And in his victory lap he showed off double spins and enormous air for no other reason then he could.

 

The two women in the competition also put on a good show. Fabiola da Silva threw down a complete run including a backflip and a fakie to faki nine her second time out that was good enough for 4^th. That means at least four guys have to live with getting beat by a girl. And Ayumi Kawasaki’s 6^th place also left some guys in the dust. But maybe it’s good for them. Nothing motivates guys to improve like getting beat by a girl.

 

-Check out Lat34's Coverage of the LG Action Sports World Tour