No city in the world can claim as much skateboarding history as the City of Angels. From the hallowed beaches of Santa Monica and Venice to the ledges and school yards of East LA, Los Angeles has played an integral role in shaping the modern skateboarding landscape we see today.
Aside from being the epicenter of the skateboard industry itself, a great majority of the world's pros call LA and the surrounding areas home — making this weekend's stop of Street League Skateboarding at Los Angeles' Galen Center a unique, home-court location for many of the tour's top contenders. Here's are the weekend's biggest questions:
Injuries still plaguing top riders
Nyjah Huston fought through injuries to win Stop #1 of the 2014 SLS tour.
Despite posting an image of a badly sprained wrist on his Twitter feed just days before the first SLS stop in Chicago three weeks ago, Nyjah Huston proved once again that come hell or high water he's not willing to back down — landing himself a first-place finish in Chi-Town in spite of his injury and some stiff competition from the likes of Luan Oliveira and Shane O'Neill. But other SLS pros aren't always so eager or willing to skate through wounds. Sean Malto will remain out during the LA event — still recovering from an injured knee. Meanwhile, Ryan Sheckler may also be sitting out in LA due to a recent, unconfirmed injury that may prevent his attendance. The persistence of injuries proves once again to be the great equalizer for SLS competition and has the constant potential to level the playing field at any time.
Luan means business
Luan Oliveira is nipping at Nyjah's heels in 2014.
If there was a crowd favorite in Chicago, it was Brazilian-born Luan Oliveira who wooed the crowd with his speed, commanding power and big, point-scoring tricks — including a massive backside flip over the big box earning him back-to-back scores of 9.5 from judges. After narrowly missing the SLS victory in Chicago, finishing just behind Nyjah Huston by a razor-sharp one tenth of a point, Luan proved to the world that he means business this year. There's no question the LA crowd will be watching for more tenacity from him this weekend.
All eyes on Chris Cole
Chris Cole is currently sitting in 8th place.
With as many Street League victories under his belt as he has, it would be easy to see how a competitor like Chris Cole could be comfortable resting on his laurels — and after an uncharacteristically soft performance in Chicago, it's clear Cole hasn't yet turned up the jets. Known for automatic destruction on par with Nyjah, Cole has proven to be a silent killer in SLS competition in years past and can easily flip on the switch at a moment's notice. Sleeping giant Cole is currently sitting behind the pack in eighth place making LA an opportune time for him to make a run up the ladder.
Dark horse Matt Berger making name for himself
Don't sleep on Matt Berger in Los Angeles.
Emerging from the Monster Energy Pro Open back in May as one of three deserved wildcard pros to join the tour, Canadian Matt Berger proved in Chicago that he's a force to be reckoned with in 2014. After a strong performance during the prelims, Berger advanced to the finals skating against the likes of Torey, Nyjah, Sandoval and other, more veteran SLS pros — proving to the world exactly why he deserved a spot on this year's tour. This dark horse will certainly be one to watch in LA and throughout the tour as he's clearly taking the opportunity to prove himself.
Home-course advantage?
With so many SoCal rippers in attendance this weekend, the "home-court advantage" may be a non factor.
LA is home to more skateboard professionals than any other city in the world which begs the question: Is there a home-court advantage to be had in Los Angeles for any of this stop's competitors? The LA arena is literally in the backyard of top pros like P-Rod, Torey Pudwill, Dylan Rieder and Nyjah, but only time will tell if this will be of any significance to the riders during the contest. If anything, there will certainly be lots of industry eyes in the crowd and a loyal fanbase that's accustomed to cheering on SLS events in the Southern California area.
The 2014 SLS Los Angeles finals kick off live Sunday, July 27 at 8/5 p.m. ET/PT only on FOX Sports 1 and FOX Sports GO, with an international webcast streaming on StreetLeague.com.
SATURDAY, JULY 26 (ALL TIMES PST)
5 p.m.-6 p.m. — Preview Show (LIVE WEBCAST on FoxSports.com and StreetLeague.com)
SUNDAY, JULY 27 (ALL TIMES PST)
1:40 p.m.-4:20 p.m. — Prelims (LIVE WEBCAST on FoxSports.com and StreetLeague.com)
5 p.m.-6:30 p.m. — Final (LIVE on FOX Sports 1 and FOX Sports GO, w/ international webcast on StreetLeague.com)
6:35 p.m.-6:55 p.m. — Best Trick Encore (LIVE WEBCAST on FoxSports.com and StreetLeague.com)
