Ex-area teen bids for spot in X Games
At age 6, while hanging out in his friend’s garage, Alex Sorgente saw his first skateboard.
It was love at first skate.
“I fell in love instantly,” said Sorgente, now 19.
He hasn’t stopped skating since. On Friday and Saturday, Sorgente, whose family lives in suburban Lake Worth, will be competing in an X Games qualifier in Boise, Idaho.
The X Games is the annual extreme sports event produced and hosted by ESPN. This year, the competition will be held July 13-16 in Minneapolis at U.S. Bank Stadium, home of the Minnesota Vikings.
Sorgente will be competing against 14 others in Skateboard Park, where the top six receive their ticket to Minneapolis.
“The level of skating is so high,” Sorgente said from Italy where’s he’s visiting family. “Anyone can take it.”
The Men’s Park final will be aired live Saturday on XGames. com at 4:30 p.m.
Alex’s father, Luca, is not surprised by what his son is doing.
“He doesn’t dodge competition,” Luca said in a video posted on ESPN’s website. “He looks for it. Every year he’s stepping it up little by little and having fun.”
To qualify would be another fantasy-turned-reality for Sorgente, who has competed in the X Games before, finishing fourth last year in Austin, Texas, in the men’s Skateboard Park competition.
“I remember growing up as a kid and watching the X Games every year and dreaming of participating in it,” he said.
Sorgente said he loves skating because of the independence it gives him. “No one can tell you how to ride,” he said. “You just go out and create your own style and tricks.”
He’s had plenty of close calls over the years — too many to count, he said. Sorgente broke his wrist twice, he’s suffered a few concussions, sprained ankles and countless cuts and bruises.
“Skating is crazy because every day you go out there you can fall,” he said. “Learning tricks takes time and slamming into something is most likely going to happen.”
Sorgente was born in Boca Raton but eventually moved to suburban Lake Worth with his family.
“I loved going to the beach in Lake Worth,” said Sorgente, who now lives in California. “It’s beautiful and when the waves are good, it’s like no other place in the world.”
While skateboarding may not be a natural career choice, Sorgente is hoping it can be. “If I can skate, make money and not have to work a 9-to-5 job, I will,” he said. “Doing well in competitions and making sponsors happy are ways to make that possible.”
For now, Sorgente is focused on that task at hand — getting invited to the Games.
“I feel my chances are pretty good,” he said. “I just came off a win in Sweden, so I’ll try to keep the momentum going and skate well.”