Sports

Go Skateboarding Day 2009: Skaters Ride from California to Kabul

by Jon Azpiri | June 21, 2009 at 09:54 am

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In addition to being Father's Day and the Summer Solstice, June 21 is also Go Skateboarding Day 2009. Created in 2003 by the International Association of Skateboard Companies (IASC), Go Skateboarding Day is a time to celebrate all aspects of skateboard culture.

Go Skateboarding Day events are being held in more than 30 countries, including Afghanistan. Thanks to the efforts of Skateistan, a volunteer skateboarding organization run by Australian Oliver Percovich, the sport is catching on in the war-torn country.

"Long live Afghanistan!" the children shouted in reply as they skated past.

Wearing white T-shirts adorned with "Skateistan" logos, the children zipped from the national stadium -- once the scene of public Taliban executions -- to another part of the city to take part in a competition in honor of world Go Skateboarding Day.

One of the world's poorest and most conservative countries seems like a strange place to set up a skateboarding school, but the founders of Skateistan say it has proven a remarkably successful way to reach out to marginalized kids.

In the US, dozens of communities will be holding events. Perhaps one of the most important is the opening of the P-Rod Park in Los Angeles, CA. The park is named after famed skater Paul Rodriguez and was sponsored in part by Nike.

For more info on events worldwide, go to the Go Skateboarding Day website.

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stemutz

at 10:30 on June 22nd, 2009

Great "Go Skateboarding Day 2009" Session at the WUIUAI Skatepark, Heitenried (Switzerland) ... lot of skaters, sausages and nifty prices for good runs ... thanks to Volcom & Vans for organizing these events.

stemutz has contributed a photo to this story.