Awei Xiao is a 21-year-old Chinese freeskater currently living in Raleigh, North Carolina to study English. He skates for Flying Eagle and released an impressive edit about a year ago for them.
How is skating in Raleigh?
It is very cool. The downtown is completely empty so I can skate anything I want there. I have also met a lot of skaters that live there.
The Flying Eagle “Los Angeles” edit you made was absolutely amazing. You are taking freeskating skating and blending it with parkour. Did you do parkour on its own before incorporating it into your skating?
I had been practicing parkour with friends in my hometown. I want my skating to be unique and different from other skaters. So I am blending parkour, freestyle, slalom and sliding together to create my own style.
What is the skate scene like in China?
Inline skating is very popular in China. You see people skating past you on the roads to go to work or school. When I was in High School I would skate there everyday.
Did you slalom skate growing up?
I was slalom skating one hour a day for two years. Slalom skating came easy to me because I had grown up practicing Kung Fu, which made me very flexible.
When did you do the downhill in Tibet? What was that like?
I went to Tibet two years ago and skated the biggest downhill of my life. In two and half hours I skated from an altitude of 4500 meters to 2800 meters. It was amazing and I will be going there again next year!
How do you see your skating progressing or changing in the future?
I will continue my style of mixing different kinds of skating together and practicing more aggressive skating. My goal is to be an aggressive skater.
What is the best city you’ve ever skated?
Guang Zhou, China! There are endless amounts of street spots all over the city. There is also so much amazing street food there.
Who is you favorite skater to watch?
Check out this brand new mini edit of Awei skating around Raleigh by Ryan Timms…
Links
- Follow Awei on Instagram to keep up with his skating and travels.
- For more information on the Drift skate visit the Flying Eagle website.
- Contact Big Wheel Blading for any questions, suggestions, story ideas or to contribute content.
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