The biggest story for me at X Games 12 got little attention.
Fabiola da Silva is the leading female medal-winner in X Games history, a seven-time in-line skating gold medalist, but she won’t even be in California when the games are contested …
… women’s in-line skating was dropped two years ago after organizers said the sport was no longer popular enough to be included.
… When the games debuted in 1995, six of 29 events were specifically designed for women and another, the Eco Challenge, paired a man and woman. Of this year’s 16 events, there are only two — skateboard vert and skateboard street — for women. …
“I really don’t understand why they don’t have more women’s sports at the X Games,” Da Silva said. “It’s really a bummer. They have the opportunity to help women, but it seems like they just keep cutting us off.”
“We’re committed to having women at the X Games in a meaningful way,” Skipper said. “By no means do we have a gender-driven agenda here. I think we just hit a little bit of a blip, but it is our intention to have more events with women in the coming years.”
For Women, It’s Nearly Ex Games – Los Angeles Times
I want X Games to succeed. I have more faith in ESPN than I do in the IOC when it comes to running an international sports event.
But they are bungling this. ESPN needs to return skating to the line-up. It’s my favourite event. And Fabiola should be prized as one of their brightest stars.
Gymnastics Coaching.com 