By: Sammy Wang

In 2022, Macdonald declared that he would try to qualify for a spot in the 2024 Summer Olympics, specifically for the skating category. His motive was to represent his father’s homeland of Great Britain.

Despite being 50 years old, he qualified to participate, making him the oldest Olympic Skateboarder in history.

“I never thought that I would actually qualify for the Games,” Macdonald said. “When I started this process two and a half years ago, it was mostly just like this experiment of, ‘Yeah, maybe I can compete with 14-year-olds when I’m 50.'”

Born on July 31, 1973, he started skateboarding when he was 12. He graduated from Newton North High School in 1992 and later became a professional skateboarder in 1994. In 1998, he was chosen as the “Best Overall Skater” for the Transworld Skateboarding magazine.

Additionally, he is a father to three children: an 18-year-old son, and two daughters, one 13 and the other 8..

Despite having experience and skills at his disposal, Macdonald is eager to learn from and teach his competitors at the Olympics.

“I have an advantage in that I have obviously much more experience in skating in competition and what it takes to mentally prepare and physically prepare,” he said. “They have the advantage in their youth.”

The skateboarding competition runs from July 27 to August 7 with 88 competitors. He is the only man alongside two other women representing Great Britain. Although it is not clear who he is going to be competing against, fans are excited for his performance.

Sources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andy_Macdonald_(skateboarder)
https://www.nbcolympics.com/news/50-year-old-skateboarder-andy-macdonald-age-just-number
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Britain_at_the_2024_Summer_Olympics#Skateboarding