Chloe Covell's Star is Rising

Chloe Covell knows exactly where she was when she became obsessed with skateboarding. She was six years old and watching a televised skate competition with her dad at home in New South Wales, Australia. On the screen flashed Nike SB team rider Nyjah Huston, who hucked himself down a set of stairs and stuck the landing. Instead of being terrified by the move, she was mesmerized by it. She needed to experience the adrenaline rush herself.

Now, at 14, Chloe has the opportunity to medal for her home country this summer, just eight years after she picked up a board for the first time. She’s also the face of the Nike SB Day One, the first Nike skate shoe made from the ground up specifically for kids. It’s the kind of shoe Chloe wishes she had when she was starting out. Here, we hear from the phenom on what she’d tell her 6-year-old self and what she wants kids everywhere to know about picking up a board.

Growing up around a place with good skate culture is huge. Tweed Heads [a coastal town in New South Wales] has a lot of local parks that are good for skaters who are just starting out. We have two skate parks around my house: Tugun and Pizzey, which is a comp-standard park. I started skating those parks all the time, and seeing people doing hard tricks made me want to get better and better. When you want to take a break, you can go skimboarding, swimming, surfing — pretty much anything outside. I’ve grown up doing it all.

The skate community is really supportive. So many people have helped me become the skater I am today. My mum and dad are the most important people for me, and my sister always encourages me and congratulates me. I'm gonna throw Geoff Campbell [Nike SB Australia Team Manager] in there because he’s helped me heaps. Other skaters in my home crew: Tommy Fynn, Eli and Beau Waterson, Yo Wuoti and Jaxon Passey. They’re all ripping skaters who make me wanna skate hard. Momiji Nishiya and Rayssa Leal are my two favorite skaters, but they’re also my friends. They both have really cool styles and do really good tricks. I look up to them a ton.

I like having a day of the week where I don’t skate. I skate every day except on Friday, when I’ll fish. Just fishing and chilling out. It helps me relax, and this way I don’t burn out or anything.

Coaches don’t necessarily need a ton of experience to be helpful. They just need to show up and be consistent. I love having my dad as a coach because he pushes me to the right level and knows what I can do. He’s really helped me progress. Even though he doesn’t come from skateboarding, he’s aware of it and takes the time to understand the sport and culture. When we go filming, he understands my abilities, and when we’re at comps, we work well together.

Never stop trying to stick a new trick. Frontside feebles [a move that’s somewhere between a 50-50 and a board slide] took me a really long time to learn. I’d try them out, but I wouldn’t lean back, so I’d just get bodied all the time. I kept practicing, and I realized that I had to really lean back and push out my board. Now, it’s my go-to trick. 

I like to keep the things I wear simple. I need a fresh T-shirt, pants and I’m fine. Dunks always look good with the ’fit. Plus, I’m really liking the new Day Ones too. They’re one of the comfiest shoes I've ever worn, and they look cool.

I define winning a little differently than most. Whoever has made it to the comp wins because you made it that far. You put in the work to get there, so everyone’s winning. Sometimes it’s just luck though, right? Everyone’s working hard, but sometimes you’re more consistent and things come together on the day.

When I prepare for a comp, I always start with the basics. Before I drop in, I always take a deep breath to help me focus on what I’m doing and get in the moment.