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Poppy Starr: The best female skater in the world

SN ART full story Poppy Starr: Bondi teen and the best female skater in the world

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POPPY STARR: Skateboarding is an art form, a sport and a lifestyle. I just like to go fast and high. In skateboarding, that's my favourite thing to do, is just go high in the air.

KATE “THOMAS” STARR: I put her into ballet. She had tennis lessons. All these lovely, safe things. (LAUGHS) She chose skateboarding, and so you've just got to go with it. You've got to do what they love. It makes them a good, happy kid.

POPPY STARR: I guess you kind of have to be a little bit of a daredevil. I do get scared when I'm trying new things, definitely. But when I'm just flying around having fun, it's just amazing.

RAHNI SADLER: Skateboarding is taking Poppy Starr to some amazing places. From a purpose-built arena at Bondi Beach with her mum cheering on the sidelines...

# Kiss your baby goodbye... #

RAHNI SADLER: ..to America's skateboard mecca - Santa Monica, California.

POPPY STARR: There's just so many awesome girl skaters over there.

  1. No fun, my baby... #


POPPY STARR: Every skate park you go to, there'll be, like, a pro skater there. It's the coolest thing I've ever seen.

RAHNI SADLER: We are travelling with Poppy as she prepares to take on the world's best...

RAHNI SADLER: Have you ever hit anyone in the head doing this?

POPPY STARR:No.

RAHNI SADLER:..with a repertoire of high-risk tricks...

RAHNI SADLER: (SQUEALS)

RAHNI SADLER: If you could have had your daughter go into anything, would you have chosen skateboarding?

KATE “THOMAS” STARR: Oh, gosh, no! I would never in a million years thought she'd be skateboarder. No way! My goodness!

RAHNI SADLER: Poppy is leading a new generation of skater girls touring the globe. She's 15 and has just turned pro. Here, she'll be skating against the most skilled women, some twice her age.

SKATER GIRL: Did you see this girl?!

RANI SADLER: They're all competing to be world champion.

KATE “THOMAS” STARR: Skateboarding is everything. She lives and breathes it. It's her life. She can't go... You know, after a couple of days of not skateboarding, she gets antsy. She has to get on a board and go to the skate park.

  1. The world is yours, baby... #


RAHNI SADLER: When did she first show an interest?

KATE “THOMAS” STARR: A friend of ours gave her a skateboard when she was eight and she just absolutely became obsessed by it.

  1. The world is yours, baby... #


POPPY STARR: At the time, I just thought girls didn't really do it. I guess...they were... I don't know if I thought they weren't brave enough or they just had no interest in it, but I thought it was pretty cool to be a girl doing something that girls didn't really do.

RAHNI SADLER: Poppy stood out not only because she was a girl but because from the start, she pushed her limits. Here's a pint-sized Poppy aged nine at Bondi Beach.

POPPY STARR: I just did it and I was so happy after that, and I remember there were a bunch of teenage guys there cheering me on. (CHEERING) It was really awesome.

RAHNI SADLER: As Poppy got older, the ramps got bigger - much bigger.

RAHNI SADLER: What's it like for a mum to see that happening?

KATE “THOMAS” STARR: Um, terrifying. I swear I didn't have a grey hair before she started skating. It's been... You know, I still get scared when she learns a new trick. I think I'm getting more scared the more she skates. I scream a lot, which is embarrassing.

RAHNI SADLER: Behind every dramatic trick, there are dramatic falls. Helmets and kneepads provide some protection, but injuries are common. Poppy takes the hard knocks and just keeps going.

RAHNI SADLER: To parents who say, "I'm not gonna let my little girl be a skateboarder "'cause it's too dangerous," what would you say to those parents?

POPPY STARR: I'd say just give them a go and see if they like it, 'cause it might be the greatest, funnest, most exciting thing they've ever done.

RAHNI SADLER: What about parents who say boys should be allowed to skate but girls shouldn't?

POPPY STARR: That's rubbish. (LAUGHS) # You can't tell John Doe how to dance # See I can dance, I can dance like my name's John Doe... #

RAHNI SADLER: How long do you spend here every week?

KATE “THOMAS” STARR: Oh, gosh. Hours. Hours upon hours. Probably 30 hours. More.

  1. I can dance like my name's John Doe # You can't tell John Doe how to dance # Now, he's the chief # Dance to make it rain while the kids would drink... #


RAHNI SADLER: You're a pretty dedicated mum.

KATE “THOMAS” STARR: Or crazy!

STARR FAMILY: (SINGS)

  1. You can't tell John Doe how to dance... # Poppy lives in Newcastle. She has a younger brother and sister. # I can dance like my name's John Doe # No, no, no... #


RAHNI SADLER:Mum and dad are separated but remain close and creativity runs in the family.

# You can't tell John Doe how to dance # Now, he's the chief... #

POPPY STARR: It really comes to the fore in Poppy's art. She funds her skating career by selling it online and at street markets.

KATE “THOMAS” STARR: So many skateboarders are great artists and they're creative people, and it's an art form to actually skate and to do these beautiful things on your skateboard.

POPPY STARR: Her rise through the ranks has been meteoric... ..competing and winning in Australia against the best girls and women. Even going up against the men and holding her own.

(CROWD EXCLAIMS)

RAHNI SADLER: At the prestigious Bondi Bowl-a-Rama, Poppy had the support of the world's greatest ever skateboarder, Tony Hawk.

TONY HAWK: You're leading the charge for girls. You are.

POPPY STARR: Thank you!

RAHNI SADLER: Tony and Poppy met a few years ago. Since then, he's been a mentor and friend. On the eve of the biggest contest of her life, he's invited Poppy to his own personal skate ramp in California for some final tips before the big contest.

TONY HAWK: Like, the last time I saw her, that height of an air was kind of a struggle, and now, it's like, she doesn't put that much effort into it, because she's bigger and more confident.

POPPY STARR: He told me to remain calm in the comp. Just act like it's a practice run.

TONY HAWK: You already know how it is competing.

POPPY STARR: (LAUGHS)

TONY HAWK: You gotta believe.

POPPY STARR: Yeah.

TONY HAWK: And drop in like it's another practice run you have dialled.

RAHNI SADLER: Armed with Tony's advice, Poppy was ready to take on the biggest test of her life.
POPPY STARR: These are the best female bowl skaters in the world, so I just wanted to get top 10. I thought that would be amazing.

ANNOUNCER: Let's hear it for Poppy Starr!

(APPLAUSE AND CHEERING)

RAHNI SADLER: And on a scale of 1 to 10, how nervous is mum?

KATE “THOMAS” STARR: More nervous than Poppy, so I'd say 12.

(BOTH LAUGH)

RAHNI SADLER: Each skater has 40 seconds to prove themselves. Only eight will advance to the final.

KATE “THOMAS” STARR: (CHEERING) (LAUGHS) That was awesome! Well done! Top three - congratulations.

ANNOUNCER: From Australia, Poppy!

(ALL SCREAM)

RAHNI SADLER: And Poppy qualifies in the top three.

(SHRIEKS)

KATE “THOMAS” STARR: Oh, my God! I've got... (LAUGHS) ..goose bumps.

RAHNI SADLER: She's up!

RAHNI SADLER: Poppy's through to the finals and will now have to skate better than she's ever done in her life.

KATE “THOMAS” STARR: Yes! Yeah, Poppy! Go for it! Yeah! Yes, Poppy! Go! Yes! Yes! Keep going, keep going! YES!
(CHEERS, LAUGHS) (APPLAUSE AND CHEERING) Whoo! Whoo!

KATE “THOMAS” STARR: To me, she's won already just making the final, but if she gets on the podium, I will be so excited. But it doesn't matter. She did more than I ever hoped for already.

RAHNI SADLER: It takes 20 nail-biting minutes for the judges' decision to be handed down.

KATE “THOMAS” STARR: And that's when Poppy turned around and said, "They've forgotten me. "They've forgotten me!"

RAHNI SADLER: They count down from 10th to 5th with no mention of Poppy.

POPPY STARR: Yeah. They've missed me.

POPPY STARR: I kept on saying, "They've forgotten me. "It's OK, guys. They've forgotten me."

ANNOUNCER: Where is Poppy Starr of Australia?

KATE “THOMAS” STARR: Number one!
RAHNI SADLER: Not only did Poppy make the podium, she won the whole competition.

(WILD CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)

POPPY STARR: When they read out her name, she was in shock. Absolute shock. Everyone was looking at me, like... I got first?! What the heck?! Clapping and cheering. I was just so stoked and amazed, and my face was... I was just so surprised, I guess.

(CHEERING)

RAHNI SADLER: Your daughter is the number one female skater in the world.

KATE “THOMAS” STARR: I'm so proud of her! We just thought, you know, to go out and try your hardest and do the very, very best you can. And then she made final, and then she's done this! (LAUGHS)

POPPY STARR: Even an hour after, I was just waiting for someone to come and tell me that, "Oh, sorry. We handed it to the wrong person." But I thought, "It must be true "if they've written my name on the cheque."

RAHNI SADLER: How proud are you of Poppy?

KATE “THOMAS” STARR: Oh, gosh! So proud! I'm ridiculous. Don't. It'll make me cry! I can't even talk about how proud I am of her. God! Do you know what? (GIGGLES) Oh! She's so humble. I think that's what I'm most proud of - what a good person she is. And I don't know. How do you teach that?

  1. Hey, now You're a rock star # Get the show on, get paid # All that glitters is gold # Only shooting stars break the mould... #