Accustomed to incredible feats under pressure, Maranhão’s Rayssa Leal, just 16 years old, made history again this Sunday (15) by becoming the first athlete to win her third title in the World Skate Street League (SLS). . Behind on the scoreboard after failing the first two presentations of the maneuvers in the Super Crown (final competition that defines the champion of the season), Rayssa took Ginásio Ibirapuera into delirium by scoring 9.1 in the fifth and final chance, winning the dispute with four Japanese girls. (two of them Olympic champions) and one Australian. The Brazilian lifted the trophy and the prize of US$100,000 (the equivalent of R$600,000) after scoring 35.4 points. Olympic champion in Paris, Japanese Coco Yoshizawa (34.2) was second and compatriot Yuemeda Oda was third on the podium.
Hungry for the title of my three-time champion! 🤪🏆🏆🏆
📸 Reproduction / @sls#TimeBrasil pic.twitter.com/b7xgELQ88w
— Team Brasil (@timebrasil) December 15, 2024
“I don’t have enough words. Everything that happened today is worth more than this trophy. Turnaround, I missed the first two attempts. I was nervous, I’m not going to lie. My family followed all of this. This trophy goes to the people at home. You saw the reality of skateboarding, the friendship, the family and you will see this increasing. The level was high, several 9s. It was very Corinthian. I am fulfilled. I’m with everyone, complete team, my psychologist left Italy to come here”, said the Maranhão native from Imperatriz, emotionally, in an interview with TV Globo shortly after the victory.
Emotional control, in fact, made all the difference. Bronze in Paris, Rayssa ran the risk of being left off the podium this Sunday (15), after making mistakes in the first two maneuvers in the second part of the competition. But Fadinha – a nickname she got as a child when she skated in costume – showed once again why she is known as the Ice Queen.
The Brazilian started the Super Crown well, drawing applause in the first part of the race (two 45-second laps), drawing applause from the eight thousand fans at Ibirapuera, with scores of 8.2 and 8.5. However, in the total, the Brazilian of the two laps, Rayssa finished behind the Australian revelation Chloe Covell, just 14 years old. The competition also included five maneuver presentations, with only the three best scores being considered in the scoring. Then came the scare! Rayssa fell in the first two rounds and scored zero. The Brazilian saw the leadership alternating between the Australian Chloe and the Asian quartet (Momiji Nishiya, Yumeka Oda, Coco Yoshizawa and Liz Akama).
Unable to make any more mistakes, Rayssa went for it all or nothing and achieved excellent scores in the last three trick presentations to keep Brazil in hegemony in the world women’s street skateboarding: 9.1, 8.7 and 9.1.
It is inevitable! 👑
HOW PROUD TO HAVE YOU REPRESENTING BRAZIL, @rayssaleal! pic.twitter.com/7N5HqN3nDR
— Team Brasil (@timebrasil) December 15, 2024
“It was a very good year, with a lot of learning, physically and mentally. It was a difficult year, we overcame the difficulties and everything worked out. It’s all or nothing. The last maneuver is exactly that, I needed 9. This and some [outras manobras] I’d give it 9, but this is the one I’m most confident about. Felipe made a sensational strategy, he knows all my points”, said the Brazilian referring to coach Felipe Gustavo, a friend of Rayssa who started training her this year.
