San Jose, Costa Rica
At Costa Rica’s first-ever staged flatground skateboard contest, the éS Game of SKATE, over 150 spectators watched San Jose-based Cristian “Banano” Rivera win first place out of 40 who entered the event at San Jose’s Arenas Skatepark on Saturday, May 12.
Banano, now the country’s top-ranked flatground skateboarder, will compete in the two additional éS Game of SKATE dates planned here, with the hope of representing Costa Rica at the éS Game of SKATE Central and South American regionals in Sao Pablo, Brazil later this Summer. The winner of that will get an all-expenses-paid trip to San Diego, California to participate in the éS Game of SKATE 2007 World Championships at the ASR trade show in September.
Saturday’s tournament was the 23-year-old from Desamparados’ first skateboard victory, flat or ramp. Afterwards, Banano explained, “I had a good strategy: I played it so I could let the other guys do their tricks until they would run out, and then I would do mine, which I knew were tricks that they couldn’t do.”
The tournament-style head-to-head brought three skaters to the finals: Banano, 24-year-old Jonathan Bonilla from Desamparados and 21-year-old Rodolfo Solano from Guadalupe. Coming in second, Bonilla recalled that he was told about the éS Game of SKATE by some friends and decided to give it a try, since, for him, flatground skating is his forté. This is not by choice, as skateparks require an entrance fee. Therefore, the not-yet-sponsored Bonilla tends to do his tricks in the free public national parks around San Jose, which have flat walking or biking paths for his skateboard.
“The Costa Rica level is just starting, ramp skating is much further ahead, and there’s a lot of work to do,” explained Alfredo Siberon, who handles marketing for Arenas Skate & Surf. “We are super stoked that éS is so supportive of the sport. They are with us, not just because they want to promote their brand, but because they support the sport of skateboarding. At the moment in Costa Rica, that’s the thing we need most for this sport.”
The level of tricks seen among the competitors was surprisingly high, considering that flatground street skating is relatively new here, according to Rodrigo J. Beeche, éS Sales Representative for Costa Rica, organizer of the original éS Game of SKATE in this country. “This contest was great,” Beeche reported. “We had a great response with skaters for the first one—there were 40 guys, between the ages of 11 and 28, who signed-up. And we had 150 people watching them the whole time. It went super smooth.”
“This contest is a different format. The flatground skateboarding is meant to be done in the street,” he continued. “I was surprised at the level and the different tricks they were trying. Even with the sense of competition, it didn’t feel like a tournament; it felt like fun, like a game, because the competitors were taking their time and having a good time.” Banano agreed. And for the champion, that sentiment contributed to his win. ”I was just feeling good to be chillin’ with my friends and it all just came through.”
For éS, Rivera’s win at the éS Game of SKATE was a double slam dunk: He’s an éS team rider, as well, and was sporting his sponsors shoes when he claimed his prizes that included éS shoes, an éS t-shirt, a GSM Technology cellular phone and 1,000 points toward his skateboard ranking.
“I’ve always loved éS shoes way before I was sponsored by them,” he confirmed. “They are so comfortable, have the most support and are the best shoes for me in skating, and that’s the most important thing I’ve needed to land a trick in the past seven years.”