Olympic Skateboarder Jagger Eaton Earns a Spot and Stays Focused
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This story is part two of Men's Health's "Road to the Olympics" series, where six athletes share their training journeys as they prepare to compete at the 2024 Paris Olympics in July. Read all of the athletes' entries here.
When Jagger Eaton heads to Paris this year, it will be the second Olympics he's competed in before turning 25. He's a seasoned vet at his ripe age, enough to be partnered with brands like Red Bull and Ralph Lauren. In an Olympic Qualifier Series in Shanghai in May, he went for a double, not only winning the street final but placing third in the park final just a few hours later. In the Olympic Qualifier Series in Budapest in June, he missed the cut for the team in park but nailed his slot for Street—a key victory that was foreshadowed by the competition in Shanghai. Now, he's able to focus even more on giving street all he's got in Paris.
Last time we spoke with him, he was head-down in training cycles of three days on, one day off. Since then, he's been heads down all the time, with little time to celebrate wins. It wasn't until he got on the podium in Shanghai that it all hit him. Here, in his own words, is what happened then:
THE COMPETITIONS IN Shanghai were the gnarliest I've ever skated in my entire life. It was the hardest field of competitors, and there were only two hours in between them. When I got my medal for street, I cried during the national anthem.
The tears were faith and hope pouring out. I was also holding those emotions in the whole time—the practice sessions, the qualifiers, the semifinals. After street, I dapped my coach up, shed a tear in his arm, then went on the podium and cried. Then, I went right back into the mindset of the job not being finished.
There was an eight-month drought for me where I didn't have a good street performance. There's a big part of when you go through a drought where you start to question if it'll ever happen again. I knew if I did the work, I'd get the result. I just didn't know when it would be. I didn't know if it would happen in Shanghai or Budapest, or Paris for the Olympics. So, while I'm up there on the podium with the national anthem playing, I held that trophy and thought, holy shit, it [what he had done in training and competition] worked. Not only did it work, but I know exactly what to do. I can recreate it.
I knew if I stayed tight in my head and on purpose the whole time, where I didn't celebrate anything until it was over, I would end the day with two podiums. I immediately went to the physical therapy room, got the Normatecs on my leg, put my legs up, listened to music, got food, and then headed to the skate park right after. Throughout my training, the crew at Red Bull helped me so much the whole time with physical therapy and helping me out through the whole time. I had so much help. I couldn't have done it without them.
I had so many great people around me. First off, I had my coach John Nicholson from USA Skateboarding. I've been working with him for six or seven months. As I told you last time, we have been grinding in the park, running simulated contests. He's been with me every day. To have him out there was huge because he knew exactly what I was going to do. It's ridiculous how strategized we are with everything. He has the same sort of passion I have. One of the things I loved so much about my competition in Asia is that I didn't stray away from any sort of strategy. The strategy that I went in with was the one I executed, and it worked exactly [as I planned].
A big part of me loves things that just can't seem to be done. I love that challenge. And [skating park right after street] was the most impossible challenge I've ever faced in skateboarding thus far. My semifinals in park was sketchy. I blew my first two runs, made my third, and qualified sixth. My whole thought process was: This is where you rise. This is where it happens. In these moments, when you're exhausted, when you feel you have that emotional release, it's time to tap in. It's time now.
There's so much adrenaline and nervousness when you get to that level of competition [in these qualifiers]. I felt my overall shape was great, but the numbers I scored in the park competition translated better than I could ever imagine. Was I still sore [on the finale]? Yes, I was dying. I walked into [the final round] thinking, we're going to have 800 milligrams of Advil, drink a Red Bull, and turn up. That was my feeling going into it. During my last street run, I was listening to Lil Uzi Vert and Chief Keef's "Bean (Kobe)." That wasn't even the song I chose. I was so tapped in on that third try that I rolled in and didn't care what song was playing. I was going to land that trick.
Anytime you get on the podium with that level of competition, it means a ton because, firstly, as an athlete, I know I can handle it. That means the most to me.
Everything I did in Shanghai is easily transferrable to Paris for the Olympics—no problem. I've prepared for the Olympic Games these last five months. Now, I have a foundation that's very strong, and all I'm doing is building on that. The work is done.
Want to follow more Olympians' journeys? Click below to read about their training methods, wellness routines, and more.
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