The mother of a local skateboarding prodigy is calling for greater investment and support to help the island’s burgeoning young skate community keep growing.
Laura Rosser – whose nine-year-old daughter Lottie is already turning heads in the UK skateboarding scene – said that without better facilities, funding and coaching locally, young islanders with exceptional talent risk being left behind.
“There’s people on the island, like Lottie, who have a passion for a niche sport, and if you can’t self fund it then you can’t participate,” she explained.
“It’s not fair as it stops her from nurturing her talent and reaching her full potential.”
Mrs Rosser added: “If there’s no one in Jersey to be able to nurture her and teach her, then it’s impossible for her to reach the level she wants to be at.”
Since taking up skateboarding at just 18 months old, Lottie fell in love with the sport – practicing almost daily at Les Quennevais skatepark.
The nine-year-old is now at a level that requires her to travel off-island for further training and competitions, something her family has had to self-fund. While there are funding options for niche sports available in Jersey, Laura explained that the eligibility criteria of current schemes has been restrictive.
Mrs Rosser is also urging the Government to invest in improved facilities such as an indoor skate park – an idea floated in SOJDC proposals to revamp Fort Regent, which are currently out for consultation.
This, she says, would allow athletes to train year-round and could even help attract tourism by hosting competitions.
“There’s not enough facilities or skateboarding camps available on the island,” she said.
“An indoor skate park would be a massive bonus to Jersey and would also help to bring in tourism as we’d be able to host skating competitions.”
Mrs Rosser said that, in previous years, a national skateboarding competition due to be held in Jersey was cancelled due to the lack of indoor skating facilities in the island.
“The outdoor skatepark is not accessible all year round and is only available if weather permits, and we’ve also had a few bad winters,” she explained.
Now helping to coach with Skateboard Jersey, Mrs Rosser also highlighted the sense of community that skateboarding brings to the island.
“Everyone’s really mindful and looks out for each other,” she explained.
“There’s a really good community and environment up here, but I just feel like there could be more.”
Mrs Rosser also pointed to the growth of the island’s skateboarding community, particularly among girls and women, and said the sport helped create a positive and inclusive environment.
“The skate park is a place where people can come, and it doesn’t matter who you are because everyone fits in,” she said.
Despite the challenges, Lottie’s passion and talent recently earned her an exclusive invitation to skate alongside Olympic bronze medallist Sky Brown at an event in the UK.
The young islander even won an award for best trick at the event.
Her mum said Lottie, who hopes to become a professional skater one day, was “over the moon” to meet her idol.