Brothers take Gold and Silver at the 2000 X Games

August 19, 2000 - San Francisco, CA

     17 year old Eito Yasutoko and 14 year old Takeshi Yasutoko take Gold and Silver medals in men's Aggressive In-Line Skating Vert at this year's 2000 ESPN X Games in San Francisco.

Eito goes inverted for SF crowd.

     The two world ranked brothers from Osaka, Japan skated flawlessly thrilling thousands of fans, against competitors from France, Australia, Germany, Spain and California.  During his run, Eito took gold by performing amazing grabs, flips and spins over the fifteen foot ramp, all executed with a clean and unique style. 

     To put the icing on the cake, Eito pulled-off a nearly impossible 1080 to finish his run.  The crowd roared with excitement after this amazing trick.

Takeshi with coping grind.

     The fact that Australian, Cesar Mora had  also completed a huge 1080 in his run, marked the first time in competition history that two 1080's have been accomplished in a single event. Younger brother, Takeshi placed second with huge tricks, complemented with an innovative, flat-spin method.  He made it look easy to his fellow competitors and crowd. 

     The brothers met with AC Team co-founder Mike Kai moments after their winning performances on the half pipe.

Mike Kai (R) interviews winner, Eito Yasutoko.

AC Team's Kai: Congratulations Eito! What is your favorite trick in Vert skating?

Eito: Big Air!

AC Team's Kai: How did you get started in inline skating?

Eito: My mother and father are skaters and they got us started at an early age.

AC Team's Kai: What is it like to travel around the world to compete?

Eito: I've traveled around the world and have had the chance to learn many different cultures.

AC Team Kai: Hi Takeshi, what is your daily routine? How much do you practice?

Takeshi: After school, I practice for about three hours a day.

AC Team: What do your friends at school think about you being a professional inline skater?

Takeshi: I don't talk much about my skating at school. Most of my friends don't know that I do this.

AC Team's Kai: Thanks Eito and Takeshi and good luck for your future competitions!

(L to R): Takeshi and Eito.

Takeshi and Eito: Thanks!

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     This is the second year in a row for a Gold medal for Eito Yasutoko.

     2000 ESPN X Games features 350 of the world's top extreme sports athletes competing in more than $1 million dollars in purse money in Aggressive In-Line Skating, Skateboarding, Bicycle Stunt, Freestyle Moto X, Wakeboarding, Skysurfing, Sportclimbing, Street Luge and Wakeboarding.

     X Games B3 "Boards, Bikes, Blades" and X Trials will qualify extreme sports athletes in the U.S. for upcoming X Games competitions. X Games Qualifiers in Asia, Europe, Latin America, Australia/New Zealand, Canada, and Japan. A three-stop Asian Xtour will gather the best local athletes on individual stops across Asia in Bangkok, Taipei and Singapore to compete in the first X Global challenge in 2002. At each of the qualifiers, ESPN will stage the Junior X Games designed for competitive fun for children ages 10-14.

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Check television schedules for the 2000 X Games at:
www.expn.com
www.espn.com 

More related articles:
Finding the Spirit behind the X Games

Other related links:
www.goodskates.com (Japanese)
 

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