SAO CAETANO DO SUL, Brazil — No matter how much 9-year-old Brazilian Nicole Amaro pleaded with her dad to let her skateboard, Deivison wasn’t swayed. He was afraid she’d get hurt, and held his ground.Nicknamed Fadinha, or “Little Fairy” in Portuguese, 13-year-old Rayssa Leal became an overnight sensation after winning the silver medal in the Olympics’s inaugural skateboarding competition.
Brazilians were first introduced to Rayssa Leal in 2015, when a video showed the then 7-year-old attempting a heelflip over three stairs while wearing a blue dress. She tumbled twice, but on the third attempt — wearing wings — stuck the landing. American skateboard legendHawk and Leal have since struck up a bond, and on her social media — where her number of followers has surged into the millions — she affectionately calls him Tio Toninho, or “Little Uncle Tony.
The sales of popular sporting goods company Netshoes started skyrocketing hours after Leal won her medal, and on the first full day afterward jumped 80% from the same day the prior week. Its best-selling item? The sneakers Leal wore during her Olympic runs. Sales of starter skateboards have surged, too, according to a spokesperson.
Rayssa’s performance in Tokyo reignited the 8-year-old’s interest and the next day she set out to find to place to skate so she could “join the little fairy team,” Leta, a 26-year-old coordinator of a nonprofit, told the AP in a message. He filmed Maria Clara skating unsteadily and put it on Twitter, joking that she was“The ‘little fairy’ effect is enormous!” he wrote at the time. Two weeks later, she’s riding down declines with perfect balance.
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