Hong Kong skateboarders hurdling bureaucracy, one ollie at a time
Skateboarders in Hong Kong often find themselves entangled in red tape due to a government that doesn’t quite get it, but there are still places to skate - we’ve the six best parks, plus five places to buy gear
Eva Lui Yi-ting leaps off the ground almost in slow motion, her skateboard floating beneath her feet before she lands with a loud and satisfying thud.
“This one’s called an ollie ... it took nine months to learn that,” says Lui, 19, referring to one of the fundamental moves in skateboarding.
Lui took up the sport four years ago and it now rules her life. She teaches teenagers how to ride at an outreach centre in Sai Wan Ho, and earlier this year competed against more than 40 males in a street skateboarding contest.
An only child, her family and friends think she’s crazy. Fearless and ambitious seem more apt.
“Feel this finger,” she says, stretching out her hand. “It’s bent – I broke it skateboarding.”
A scar on her forehead is another reminder that the sport’s not for the fragile.