By Cindy Yin
Not content with making her Olympic debut aged just 15 in Paris earlier this year, skateboarder Ruby Trew has set her sights on an unlikely bid to become the first Australian in 120 years to compete in two different sports at the same Olympics in Los Angeles in 2028.
Trew is weighing up a bid to join Edwin Flack and Snowy Baker, the only two Australians to have achieved that distinction, by qualifying for both the surfing and skateboarding competitions in LA.
Ruby Trew at URBNSURF wave pool at Sydney Olympic park on Thursday.Credit: Getty Images
Flack, Australia’s first Olympian, competed in athletics and tennis at the 1896 Athens Games, while all-rounder Baker represented Australia in swimming, diving, and boxing in London in 1908.
However, Trew’s chances of joining them may hinge on timing – and logistics. In Paris, the schedules for the skateboarding and surfing competitions overlapped, while the latter was held in Tahiti – some 15,000 kilometres away from the Place de la Concorde, the venue for the skateboarding competition. A similar situation in LA would almost certainly rule out the possibility of an athlete competing in both disciplines.
Trew confirmed she would investigate whether competing in both sports was feasible and that choosing one over the other would be an agonising decision.
When asked which sport she preferred, Trew said: “It’s kind of like ‘who do you prefer more, your mum or your dad?’ I love them both so much.
Trew competes in an Olympic skateboarding qualifier in Italy.Credit: Getty Images
“[I’m just] seeing if I’ll try and do both sports for LA, or if I’m going to just choose the one. It really depends.”
Trew shot to fame as the fearless teen skateboarder who made it to Paris, where a crash in the final trick of her heats saw her fall short by just one place in the women’s park final.
But Trew is equally skilled on the water, having begun her surfing journey at just six months old when her dad and coach, James Trew, placed her on a board for the first time.
She has competed in the World Surf League Qualifying Series and Junior Tour and is determined to continue training in both sports since returning from Paris.
“Trying to balance them [two sports] out is one of the hardest things about being a dual athlete, as well as having school and having a social life as well,” Trew said. “But [I’m] really just enjoying them both.
“And if you’re not loving it, then you should try something else. Doing them both is what I love to do, so I’m not going to stop.”
Trew said she surfs for two hours most mornings before school and heads out again after classes before skating in the evenings. But beyond the gruelling days spent honing her board skills, she says she’s also a regular teenager who wants to keep herself grounded.
“I definitely do get burnt out sometimes in sports, but it’s just about keeping the right balance,” Trew said.
“Sometimes I have rest days, I go and hang out with my mum or go shopping with my friends. I don’t need every day to be training 24/7 because it really has a big impact on your brain and ties you up mentally as well as physically.”
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