US Olympic skating superstar Jagger Eaton on listening to classical jazz while he trains, breaking records at 11 years old - and why NOBODY will be 'on his level' at the Paris Games

Last month, during a sunny day in New York City's East Village, skaters flocked to the famous blacktop at Tompkins Square Park as they so often do. 

World champion Jagger Eaton was amongst them.

In another sport, with the Paris Olympics fast approaching, such a casual outing may have been viewed as a distraction. Eaton sees it as the exact opposite for his vocation.

'I mean, it's so important to just get out and skate,' he exclusively told Mail Sport at the Team USA media summit. 'It's exactly why you pull up at like a basketball court and everybody's shooting hoops together.   

'It's like that vibe... you don't know anybody there. But everybody's skating. And all of a sudden, like, 20 minutes later, you got five new homies, and you guys are all just vibing and skating a flat bar and talking. And it's such a special environment, especially here in New York.' 

Jagger Eaton celebrates after winning the street final at the Olympic Qualifier Series on May 19

Of course, his Olympic training has entailed far more than the sort of breezy skatepark trips that made him fall in love with the sport initially. The 2021 Olympic street bronze medalist told reporters earlier in the day that this last year of work had 'taken a toll' on him.

But Eaton's skatepark voyage - and it wasn't his first time at Tompkins - shows a sort of balance that may be considered unique among elite athletes, at least outside of skating.

The 23-year-old, who's the son of competitive gymnasts (his mother, Shelly, was on the USA gymnastics team from 1985-1989), is not short on discipline. He's tailored his diet, gotten off social media and even shrunk his social circle since the last Olympics.

'They always told me how gnarly the [qualifying] process was,' he said of his parents.

But there's personality to his excellence as well. As he sits in Ralph Lauren's latest collection for Team USA, he explains how he looks up to athletes with 'steeze' (a slang term loosely meaning style) and divulges how an eclectic mix of Playboi Carti, classical jazz and Metallica soundtracks his skate runs. In an age of moisture-wicking fabrics and polyesters, he opts for a plain white T-shirt and denim jeans as his practice outfit of choice.

Perhaps it's no wonder then that Eaton's skating straddles two worlds, as he is attempting to qualify for the Olympics in both the park and street categories - something no one has ever done since the sport debuted in the Olympics in Tokyo.

Eaton, seen competing here in park, is attempting to qualify for the Olympics in two disciplines

Eaton, seen at Ariake Urban Sports Park, earned a bronze medal in street at Tokyo 2020

Park, which Eaton failed to qualify for in 2021 with a broken ankle, sees skaters try to conquer big bowls and bends with an array of high-flying tricks. Street competitions more closely resemble the grassroots spirit of the sport, as skaters are tasked with impressing judges on stairs, rails and benches.

Earlier this month, Eaton took a massive double step in earning the right to do both in Paris, as he won the street competition and placed third in park at the Olympic Qualifier Series in Shanghai, putting him at No. 2 in the world in both disciplines.

The second OQS event in Budapest still looms in June (and will be combined with his world ranking), but Eaton's ambitious goal is nearly complete. He certainly wasn't short of confidence back in April.

'There's nobody that really does it on my level,' he said of his dual-threat ability. 'And there's nobody right now who could.

'I'm not sitting here giving you false modesty. I'm just sitting here being real, because, you know, it is the truth. I kind of have that responsibility of paving the way for kids to see what's possible. And I'm grateful to have that opportunity.'

Eaton has been paving the way, to use his words, for quite some time.

At nine, he was already sponsored by Red Bull. At 11, he became the youngest ever person to compete in the X Games (a record which has since been broken).

While that roaring start brought fame and the chance to film the sort of street videos that can vault a skater to cult hero status, Eaton by now has decidedly chosen his path in the skating world.

Not all skaters choose to compete. Names like Tyshawn Jones, a two-time Thrasher Skater of the Year, have eschewed Olympic and X Games medals for sponsorships and full-length montages. Jones, in particular, has embedded himself within the fashion world due to his relationship with streetwear and skateboarding brand Supreme.

Eaton looks up to Nyjah Huston, who is six years his senior and has won 12 X Games golds

Eaton has nothing against all of that, but he wanted more.

'For me, I think what happened was I saw, I saw so much success and health come from competitive sports at a young age. Just watching football and basketball and baseball,' he says.

'And then not only that, like when I saw skateboarding I saw Nyjah [Huston], I saw [Ryan] Sheckler, I saw all these amazing guys I looked up to have so much success in contest. I'm like, I want that. No, I want to compete in front of a crowd. But at the same time I always felt like, I want something more than that. I want to be competing more for more than myself. I want to compete for my country, you know what I mean?'

Eaton is not afraid to ponder his standing in the sport, and think about if he can match the sort of impact of skating legends like Tony Hawk, Sheckler and the still-active Huston. He's inspired by all-timers like Michael Jordan, Derek Jeter and the late Kobe Bryant too.

'Legacy definitely drives me,' he says. 'I definitely want to leave this sport better than it was when I came in. I think that's the goal.'

The 23-year-old, already a seven-time X Games medalist, is certainly concerned with winning, as well as the responsibility to produce for Team USA (assuming he qualifies).

Eaton routinely skates in a white T-shirt and jeans, as seen here in Shanghai on May 19

Eaton (right) and fellow American Tate Carew pose with their medals after the OQS park final 

But there are the softer, perhaps more understated influences that color his skating and (literally) get his wheels turning as well. He's going for style points too.

'As far as culturally, skateboarding is very in tune. I can't walk outside and skate unless I'm caught up on what I'm wearing,' he says, after mentioning earlier in the day how he cuts his T-shirts to hang above his belt - a lesson from his younger brother.

'Everything that I do on a daily basis is influencing how my skating will be that day. You know what I'm wearing, what I'm listening to, kind of what my vibe is, who I'm skating with, where I'm skating, it kind of all kind of all come comes together. And it's a really special thing. Skateboarding is always like a journey every day.

The Arizona native who looked up to Jordan, who was 'raised on' the sounds of Tupac Shakur and the Notorious B.I.G, was not short of influences on that journey to this point.

Now though, as Eaton edges closer towards Paris, it's his approach that will be mimicked by the next generation.

It's safe to say he's found his own lane. 

'I can't look at it the same. I can't look at it like the street guys were looking at, I can't look at like the park were looking at it,' he says.

'I gotta find a way to portray what I'm doing in a way where I'm where I can kind of pave the way for the youth to see it the way I see it.'