2021/07/24 09:12 France s Aurelien Giraud trains during a street skateboarding practice session at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Wednesday, July 21, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan.. France s Aurelien Giraud trains during a street skateboarding practice session at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Wednesday, July 21, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull) Alana Smith of the United States trains during a street skateboarding practice session at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Friday, July 23, 2021, in Tokyo, J. Alana Smith of the United States trains during a street skateboarding practice session at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Friday, July 23, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber) Matt Berger from Canada trains during a street skateboarding practice session at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Friday, July 23, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan. (AP.
By JOHN LEICESTER
Associated Press
TOKYO (AP) â Although the name Marty McFly won t be on the start list for the first Olympic skateboarding competition, the âBack to the Futureâ character who inspired the immortal lines âWhat s that thing he s on? It s a board, with wheels!â was a landmark personality for the sport in its groundbreaking journey to the Tokyo Games.
The Olympic debut in Tokyo of BMX freestyle also owes a debt to Hollywood, because it was Steven Spielberg s movie âE.T. the Extra-Terrestrial that showcased the acrobatic sport s wow factor to mainstream audiences.
So Tinseltown, take an Olympic bow. Skateboarding starts Sunday with the men s street competition. The men and women s medal events in BMX freestyle are on the second Sunday, Aug. 1. Back when the movie blockbusters hit screens in the 1980s, McFly would have needed a time-traveling DeLorean to foresee that these counterculture activities would be welcomed into the
Meanwhile, authorities cleared out homeless encampments with city sanitation workers removing abandoned belongings.
Los Angeles City Councilman Mike Bonin, who represents the area and could face a recall campaign, reported that 188 people had been moved from the Venice Boardwalk into shelters.
Mr Bonin launched the “Encampment to Home” programme in June, which is designed to clear the historic boardwalk of temporary shelters.
The LA City Council is spending $5million on the project, which provides temporary housing in motels before participants move into permanent housing.
Last month LA County Sheriff Alex Villanueva sent deputies to clear some homeless people from the area, despite not having any jurisdiction in Venice Beach.
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Videos uploaded daily to social media show homeless people along the beach fighting, harassing passersby and, in some cases, setting fires and committing violent crimes. Residents and business owners have complained of unsanitary conditions and a dangerous environment as encampments continued to expand amid the coronavirus pandemic. Do I want to be in Venice? Of course not, Villanueva said. Do I have to be there? Yes because the system, the way it s set up, and the architects of this failed plan are forcing us to take a different approach.
Bob Carlson, who owns a skateboard and snowboard business in Venice, has lived in the area for three decades.