Who is Vareeraya Sukasem? Everything about the 12-year-old Thai skateboarder making her Olympic debut at Paris Olympics 2024

Vareeraya Sukasem, also known by her nickname "ST," is a 12-year-old skateboarding prodigy from Thailand. She is set to be among the youngest athletes at the upcoming 2024 Paris Olympics.

Sukasem's skateboarding journey began five years ago when her mother, Tulraya Chatawong, took her to a newly opened skate park near her home in Bangkok. The then seven-year-old was initially interested in rollerblades, but her mother tricked her into taking the skateboard, starting her journey to become an Olympian.

Vareeraya Sukasem is one of the 22 women to qualify for the Paris Olympics 2024 in the street skateboarding competition. Her idol is Britain’s Sky Brown, who is also competing at the Paris Olympics 2024. However, Brown is scheduled to take part in the park competition.

The 12-year-old Thai prodigy is ranked 87 in the world as of July 13. She is training under coach Kenny Reed at the local indoor skatepark.

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"I was so happy" - Vareeraya Sukasem was delighted after qualifying for the Paris Olympics

Vareeraya Sukasem was battling for a Paris Olympics spot at a qualifying event in Budapest last month. The 12-year-old was feeling ‘pressured’ ahead of the event, failing to qualify for the final round.

It looked like Sukasem’s journey to the Olympics was over until she saw a message pop from her mother.

“While waiting for my testing (doping) result, my mom messaged me: 'ST, you made it to the Olympics!'," she told AFP.

Vareeya Sukasem claimed that such was the extent of her happiness on qualifying for the Paris Olympics 2024 that she screamed in the middle of the testing room.

“I was so happy. I screamed in the middle of the room because I was so happy that I had really made it.”

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