Three Female Skateboarders on the Future of Equality in the Sport
“I’m excited to see the younger generation push women’s street skating and show us all what’s possible.”
Typically, you wouldn’t expect to see a 700-meter skatepark during fashion week but in Copenhagen this season, it appears that NIKO JUNE and New Balance had other ideas. Teaming up at the Fall/Winter 2025 season of Copenhagen Fashion Week, the duo created a custom-built skatepark complete with gigantic skateable installations, based on NIKO JUNE’s distinctive design language.
Aiming to blur the lines between sport, art and fashion, the custom park invited a series of skateboarders in to perform and compete in a one-night-only competition, hoping to foster collaboration and community. Three female skateboarders led the charge, bringing their unique journeys and backgrounds to one communal space. Featuring U.K. skaters Connie Gascoyne and Helena Long along with Nordic skater Sofie Valle Mørk, the competition brought global talents together for a powerful cultural exchange.
Ahead, we speak to three of the skaters from the competition about how they discovered the sport and what the future holds for the women at the forefront of it.
Sofie Valle Mørk, 16 from Norway
“When I was younger I tried a lot of different activities before I started skateboarding. I was already doing a lot of snowboarding, so when I found an old skateboard at home I started to skate in our living room. My mum thought it was a good idea to take me to the local skatepark instead. I think I was about nine years old, and after that, I have loved and enjoyed skateboarding every day.
I used to skate a lot in the local parks, but I also skated everywhere we traveled, so I met a lot of new people everywhere. I love that part, meeting new people, skate new places, and making new friends. I was lucky that Tiago Lemos reached out to me two years ago. After that, I went skating a lot with all the big skaters in Oslo, got to film with Pekka and did a lot of street skating. All the guys are so good at skating and they take such good care of me. I’m so grateful for that.
Last year I started to do some contests outside Norway, which I also enjoyed. I love every part of skateboarding. I think girls will just keep evolving in skateboarding. The level is getting so high, and I think that’s very cool to see. In the contest world, I think it’s good that there is a girls and a boys class, but for the rest, like in the streets, I don’t think that should count too much. I just want everyone to skate together, have fun and be stoked together. I just want to skate with people who give me good energy, no matter what gender they are.”
Helena Long, 33, from the U.K.
“I started when I was a young teenager and I saw some boys skating outside my school and saw them actually flipping the boards – or popping Ollies at least and I thought that maybe I could do it too. I had a skateboard at home somewhere so I joined them and that was that! Also playing the Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater game and unlocking the character videos. I was then exposed to the possibilities and the idea of street skating.
I think it’s already evolved so much in such a short space of time. I think that a combination of social media exposure and platforms such as the Olympics has only pushed the boundaries for women in skateboarding. I hope to see more female skaters expand from the skateparks and contest circuit and take it to the streets.”
Connie Gascoyne, 28, from the U.K.
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“I saw skateboarding on the TV as a kid and I always wanted to skateboard but I was from a small village, I moved to Manchester when I was 18 and the first thing I did was buy a skateboard. The future is bright! Already so much has changed for women. I’m excited to see the younger generation push women’s street skating and show us all what’s possible.”
