Tommy Fynn has been named as a member of the World Skate Athlete Commission and will be a representative on behalf of all Street skaters in the lead up to the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.
Athletes were asked to vote amongst themselves during the 2022 World Championships at Aljada Skate Park in Sharjah, United Arab Emirates (UAE) on who they wanted to see representing their discipline and working alongside World Skate.
Fynn will collaborate with Ryan Decenzo of Canada, Charlotte Hym of France, and Pamela Rosa of Brazil after receiving the second most votes (18%) out of nine other male Street skaters. Three other athletes will be representing Park; Amelia Brodka of Poland, Danny Leon of Spain and Edi Damestoy of France.
Together, these skaters will have a voice in every aspect of World Skate's operations, from course design and event management, to Youth Athlete Development programmes, contest formats, and everything else the organisation has planned or is currently working on, all the way up to and including the Olympic Games.
Having received a large number of votes from his peers, Fynn feels very honoured to be given the opportunity to step up and be one of the four voices representing Street skating on the world stage.
"I definitely feel honoured that they voted me into this role. I have a lot of respect for my fellow street skaters and peers so I'm excited to be able to be the voice for them," he commented.
While Fynn waits for more information regarding his role and the next steps, he has already begun thinking of ideas in the hopes of creating some positive change.
"I have a few things in mind, but as it is so new, I am waiting to hear more about what is involved.
"I'm super excited and happy to be in this position to try and make some positive changes.”
With skateboarding growing rapidly within the community, Fynn hopes to change the way people view the sport as something more than just a "hobby."
"I think it will show the future generation that skateboarding is more than just a hobby and they can actually make a career out of something they enjoy doing while also being a positive voice for a sport they love."
Skate Australia's High Performance Manager, Debbie Savage, congratulated Fynn on his appointment, expressing the exciting opportunity his role presents to the broader Australian skate community.
"The Skateboarding High Performance Program is tremendously proud of Tommy’s selection onto the World Skate Athlete Commission, this is a prestige position representing Street Athlete’s across the globe, and being voted in represents the high level of trust and respect Tommy has from the Olympic Athlete network," Savage said.
"The extensive exposure and influence on decision making that the commission will provide as an athlete voice and lens for World Skate, will also allow via Tommy the Australian expertise that he brings to this role to be able to be shared globally now, and something that Australian Skateboarding is excited to support and contribute towards."
Having instantly fallen in love with skateboarding at the age of 12, Fynn has had an impressive career since turning professional in 2014 after winning three successive Australian Skating Championships between 2011 and 2013 and being named Lam Skate of the Year in 2013.
"I started when I first moved to New Zealand with my family at 12 years old. I instantly fell in love with the sport and started competing as I progressed. I won my first regional contest at 15 in Auckland, then a few years later moved to Australia," said Fynn.
"Once I got to Australia, I continued competition and signed with sponsors, and in my early 20s I turned pro.”
"One of my biggest highlights was winning Australian Skateboarder of the Year in 2013."
Fynn made Street League Skateboarding (SLS) history in his rookie year in 2016 by taking a 3rd place finish in New Jersey, and in 2020, he placed 1st in the Australian Skateboarding League National Championship.
Fynn has recently taken on the role of coach for elite youth athletes, coaching World Championships silver medalist Chloe Covell, 2021 National Champion Taj Boyle, and 2020 Rumble on the Reef Open National Champion, Haylie Powell.
Fynn competed and served as a role model for younger Australian skateboarders at the recent Park and Street World Championships which were held at Aljada Skate Park. Having performed admirably, Fynn finished 41st out of 171 men in the Street competition collecting 1391 Olympic World Skateboarding points.
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