Fourways skateboarder aims for podium at Street Lines tournament
11-year-old skateboarder Ashley Gindre is chasing a podium finish when she takes on some of South Africa’s best at this year’s Street Lines Skate Tournament in Pretoria.
Fourways resident Ashley Gindre is hoping to turn last year’s fourth-place finish into a podium spot when she competes against some of South Africa’s best skateboarders at the Street Lines Skate Tournament in Pretoria on September 19.
While the 11-year-old is one of the youngest competitors in the women’s division at the tournament, which takes place at Thrashers Skatepark, she finished fourth in the women’s division last year, narrowly missing out on a podium place. This year, she has been working to sharpen her skills and add more technical tricks to her runs. “The preparation is going really well. I’ve been working on my handplants and getting onto the higher rails. Hopefully, I will be able to showcase the new tricks I have learnt and perfected at Street Lines this year.”
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Her training has also focused on developing more technical lines that she hopes to land when it matters most. The young skater said competing against some of the country’s best gives her an added reason to push herself. “It makes me train and prepare for the competition harder. It also pushes me to try harder tricks in my runs so that I can improve on my past scores.”
One move she particularly enjoys at Thrashers Skatepark is dropping in from the roof. “I am a big fan of dropping in from the roof, and I always want to add that into my line. Last year, I was the only girl who included that line into my run, and it is a fan favourite and scores well with the judges.”
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Street Lines, founded in 2021, has grown into one of South Africa’s major skateboarding competitions, with athletes competing in women’s, men’s and junior divisions. The tournament has also placed an emphasis on developing female and junior talent, providing young skateboarders with an opportunity to gain competition experience and progress in the sport.
For Gindre, the excitement is mixed with nerves as she prepares to compete again. “I am both excited and nervous. Excited because it’s the biggest competition of the year with the best skaters in the country.”
After finishing fourth last year, however, she knows exactly what she wants this time. “My goal is to make the podium this year.”
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