Olympic Men’s Skateboarding Odds – Best Bets for Street Competition

• Men’s street skateboarding takes place on Saturday, July 24th in the Tokyo Olympics
• USA’s Nyjah Huston is the early favorite, with Japan’s Yuto Horigome closely behind in the odds
• See the full event details and favorites below

Twenty skateboarders from around the globe will compete in one of the first events of the Tokyo Olympics on Saturday, July 24th in men’s street skateboarding competition, which will make its Olympic debut in Japan. Skateboarders will be tasked with taking on a street course at Ariake Urban Sports Park designed from a number of world championship and qualifying events in past years, trying to take advantage of obstacles during their qualifying and finals runs.

The qualification portion of the street competition will stream on NBCOlympics.com and on the NBC Sports App at 8pm ET on Saturday, July 24th, followed by the finals later in the night at 11:30pm ET.

Here are the early favorites going into street skateboarding competition and a look at who some of the early favorites are.

Olympic Men’s Street Skateboarding Odds

Odds as of July 23rd

Skateboarding is making its Olympic debut in Tokyo this year after not being part of the Games in recent years. Street competition is held on a street-like course featuring stairs, handrails, curbs, benches, walls, slopes and other features, with each skateboarder performing individually and demonstrating a range of skills or tricks while being judged based on the difficulty of the tricks and execution displayed.

After the qualification round of the competition, a portion of the skateboarders will advance to the finals for a chance to claim gold, silver and gold medals and a spot on the podium.

Who’s ready for skateboarding’s Olympic debut? 🛹 #TokyoOlympics

(via @Olympics) pic.twitter.com/Fitzzhxckq

— #TokyoOlympics (@NBCOlympics) July 21, 2021

USA’s Huston and Japan’s Horigome Early Favorites

Going into men’s street skateboarding competition, there are two clear favorite according to oddsmakers for who might come away with a gold medal, that being USA’s Nyjah Huston and Japan’s Yuto Horigome.

Huston, ranked 1st in the world, is the favorite to claim gold (+100), with Horigome, ranked 2nd in the world, not far behind (+180).

Huston, who is 26 years old, is one of the most high-profile and well-known skaters in the sport behind only the legendary Tony Hawk. One of the more decorated and successful skateboarders currently competing, Huston enters the Olympics after taking gold in the 2019 world championship competition in Rome, but fell to Horigome in the Street World Championships in June to take home silver. Over his career, Huston has claimed a total of 11 medals in his career (six gold medals, five silver medals).

Horigome, who is just 22 years old, will be competing in his home country during the Tokyo Olympics. His skill set features a combination of rails and gaps, oftentimes displaying his vertical skills and all-around versatility. Horigome was named Skater of the Year in 2017 and 2018 at the Japan Action Sports Awards, and recently took first in the 2019 Summer X Games in Minneapolis and placed third in the 2019 Shanghai Summer X Games to go along with four gold medals in the World Skate League.

Training on home turf! 🇯🇵🛹#StrongerTogether

🎥: @yutohorigome pic.twitter.com/AKze6tWoUW

— Olympics (@Olympics) July 21, 2021

Outside of Huston and Horigome, there are a few other athletes to keep an eye on, including Japan’s Sora Shirai (+700) and France’s Aurelien Giraud. Shirai is ranked 3rd in the world, while Giraud is ranked 6th in the world.

For the United States, there are a few other skateboarders listed among the top of DraftKing’s early betting odds, including Jagger Eaton (+2200) and Jake Ilardi (+4000). Eaton is ranked 8th in the world, while Ilardi is ranked 7th in the world.

When it comes to placing a bet for the street competition on Saturday, picking either Huston or Horigome will likely be the wise choice, as either skater could come away with gold and the two should be able to at least fill out the top two spots on the Olympic podium. If you had to choose one skater over the other, it’s hard to go against Huston as he tries to get revenge after coming up short of a top place finish the last time the pair battled against each other.