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Taranaki’s Niwa Shewry stunned crowds.
Leigh McKenzie does it single-handed.
Some big air was achieved at the jam.
Taranaki’s Niwa Shewry, 14, stunned crowds with his performance at the 10th annual Mangawhai Bowl Jam this month.
Organiser Jesse Peters says until the open final it appeared a sure thing that Taupo pro-skater Bowman Hansen would dominate with his consistency and effortless style.
But Peters says after a spine-chilling slam, things gelled for Shewry as he linked up a combination of hair-raising tricks, including a kickflip indy followed by a frontside noseblunt.
It earned Shewry top place on the podium, alongside Bowman in second and Raglan’s Tom Mitchell in third.
Other notable performances came from a trio of siblings, Rhya Henare (4th in women’s), Remus Henare (2nd in U16s) and Rico Henare.
“Father-daughter combo of Andrew ‘Morri’ Morrison (1st in masters) and Billie Morrison (2nd in women’s) showed that family values extend to a well-carved bowl,” Peters says.
He adds the event saw a beyond-capacity crowd, and 62 skaters aged seven to 52 vying for their piece of “concrete cred”.
This year, the event was broadcast live on Sky Sports Next.
“10 years was a surreal milestone for us to hit. What started with just a handful of mates having a jam became New Zealand’s largest skateboarding event. It’s unreal,” Peters says
