Watch 9-Year-Old Skateboarder Land Back-to-Back-to-Back 900s in Front of Tony Hawk

Is Ema Kawakami the next Tony Hawk?

June 17, 2024

Presley Ann / Getty Images for The Skatepark Project

A 9-year-old skateboarder pulled out all the stops during the latest edition of Tony Hawk's Vert Alert competition.

As seen in the clips below, Ema Kawakami from Kobe, Japan, did three 900s, considered one of the most difficult stunts in skateboarding, in a row. Footage shows a stunned Hawk watching Kawakami before applauding him for flawlessly completing the stunts.

It was two years ago when Kawakami, then 7, became the youngest skateboarder to successfully land Hawk's signature move. In 1999, Hawk became the world's first skateboarder to land the 900, which consists of two-and-a-half mid-air revolutions.

But sadly for Kawakami, the overall gold medal winner of Vert Alert was 15-year-old Brazilian skateboarder Gui Khury, who landed his first 1080 during the inaugural Vert Alert in 2021.

Although vert skating isn't yet recognized at the Olympics, it will be spotlighted at the 2028 Summer Games in Los Angeles, Hawk's hometown. As for whether vert skating will have a chance to be shown during the competition, Hawk told the Salt Lake Tribune that “it would garner so much excitement from the spectators that I sense that they would want to keep it as a discipline going forward.”