Vareeraya, known by her nickname "ST", secured her place in dramatic fashion at a qualifying event in Budapest last month. She will be one of the youngest athletes to compete in Paris. Five years after stepping on a skateboard for the first time, Vareeraya Sukasem will represent Thailand at the Olympic Games at the age of 12.

After failing to make it through to the final round, Vareeraya went to the doping control centre thinking her hopes had been dashed. "While I was waiting for my test result, my mum texted me: 'ST, you made it to the Olympics,'" she told AFP. 

"I was so happy. I had a scream in the middle of the room because I was so happy that I really did it," she said. Vareeraya qualified 18th out of 22 for the women's street skateboarding event, which will take place on 28 July at Place de la Concorde in the French capital. Skateboarding, which is divided into park and street events, made its debut at the Tokyo Olympics three years ago.

Vareeraya's journey began at the age of seven. Her mother took her to a new skate park near her home in Bangkok. "My mum lied to me and said that rollerblades were not allowed, only skateboards," she said. It was her first time on a skateboard. "I didn't like it at first. I thought, 'Why do I have to skate? It's difficult,'" she said. However, she took lessons from others and let herself be taught. Her mother and others helped her along the way.

"I saw other skaters getting their board on the ramp and I thought 'is it hard?'," she said.
Vareeraya's skating idol is Britain's Sky Brown, who won bronze in Tokyo at the age of 13. She will be competing again in Paris.

They won't be meeting because they compete in different events. Brown is competing in the park event, which is based on ramps and half-pipes. Vareeraya's street event is held on a straight track with stairs and handrails to resemble an urban environment.

She has had to overcome problems such as injuries, which are not uncommon in a high-risk sport, and which have sometimes kept her off her skateboard for months at a time. At twelve years old, it is difficult to cope with such circumstances. However, it is necessary if you want to reach the Olympic Games.

"I injured myself and had to take a break for about four to six months," she said. She struggled during the pandemic and was unable to skate. However, she overcame her problems and perfected her technique. "The first time I competed outside the country was in Indonesia," she said.

"In Thailand, I didn't have many skaters to look up to, so it was a chance to admire skaters from Japan, China and the United States," said the impressive skater, who will make history by competing at the age of twelve. The Japanese skaters are expected to be the best, as they were at Tokyo 2020. They won four of the six women's medals.

Apichat Rutnin, vice-president of the Thai Extreme Sports Association, said: "Vareeraya's goal is to finish in the top 10 out of 22 in her event and go higher in future Olympics.
"She is proof that young Thai skaters can make it on the world stage and to the Olympics," he told AFP.