'Lazy pothead' skateboarders get serious with Olympic dream
Hamburgers are out, going to the gym is in. With skateboarding set to make its Olympic debut at the Tokyo 2020 Games, top skateboarders are settling down and preparing as athletes in the bid to qualify.
"Now we are athletes, within quotation marks, urban athletes," joked 24-year-old Spaniard Danny Leon, who sports surfer style hair, at a skateboarding competition in Barcelona.
Decked out in jeans, a loose dark shirt and the almost obligatory baseball cap, Leon is well positioned to fly the flag for Spain in Tokyo -- and he is taking it seriously.
"Before it would be just hitting the streets with your skateboard and skating. Now we train," says Leon.
"We exercise and stretch after and before, we take care of our bodies more, eat better, no hamburgers and pizzas."
Leon is one of several top skateboarders currently in Barcelona to take part in the World Roller Games, the world's largest event comprising all championship roller sports disciplines.
"Right now I go to the gym a lot to ...