By: Melissa Zhao

50 year old British skateboarder, Andy Macdonald, is going to the Paris Olympics of 2024 to prove that age is just a number. Having won 22 X Games medals in skateboarding, as a seasoned veteran of the sport, Andy Macdonald is ready to make his mark at the Paris Olympics.

Andy Macdonald will be competing alongside Sky Brown, at just 15, and Lola Tambling, at 16 years of age, who are both younger than his oldest son, at 18 years old. With two daughters, aged 8 and 14, and his 18 year old son, Andy has balanced being a father and a professional skateboarder at the same time, with after school activities combined with competitions and practices. He will be the first male skateboarder to represent Great Britain at the Games.

The professional skateboarder shocked watchers by clinching a last minute spot for Great Britain with only 22 spots available for the games. Originally ranked as 38th, competition was fierce and to get a spot, Andy Macdonald needed to pull off something amazing and spectacular for the audience and judges.

To win the spot, Andy put together all his most difficult tricks at once. It was extremely challenging to pull off, and he fell in his first two attempts at the tricks, but on his third try, he managed it and impressed both the audience and the judges. The next day, he finished 15th, which earned him a place in the Paris Olympics.

Andy Macdonald has proven to the world that age does not define what we can do, and he is determined to earn his hard work back with an amazing show at the Paris Olympics of 2024.

Article Link: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/07/08/sports/olympics/andy-macdonald-olympics.html

Image Credit by Kyla Rose Rockola