Skateboarding
Skateboarding
Red Bull Origin celebrates skateboarding at Brooklyn Banks
Red Bull Origin brought skateboarding legends and rising talent together at Brooklyn Banks, honoring New York City's most influential skate spot through unique challenge sessions.
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To commemorate history, history was made. The Brooklyn Banks has had its fair share of events and contests over the years, but nothing with the magnitude of Red Bull Origin.
The unique format combined added-on features to existing spots, and one enormous skateable subway train car. The contest flowed in four different “challenges” from the classic 10-stair rail at the top of the banks to the intimidating 13-stair rail in the dead center. To break up the serious competition, there was an 80s throwback “expression session” open to all thanks to the legends at SHUT Skateboards and their iconic Shark models.
Shiloh Catori kickflips into the bank at Red Bull Origin in NYC
© Jonathan Mehring / Red Bull Content Pool
Quick facts
Category
Details
Event
Location
Brooklyn Banks, New York City
Date
September 19, 2026
Feature Obstacles
10-stair rail, subway car showdown, SHUT session, 13-stair
Men's MVP
Women's MVP
Niko Sugimoto
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Red Bull Origin NYC results
Jake Wooten earned the men's MVP honors
© Jonathan Mehring / Red Bull Content Pool
Niko Sugimoto earned the women's MVP honors
© Jonathan Mehring / Red Bull Content Pool
10 Stair
- Men: 1st Antonio Durao, 2nd Jake Wooten, 3rd Frankie Spears
- Women: 1st Sofie Valle Mork, 2nd Niko Sugimoto, 3rd Celina Meehan
Subway car
- Men: 1st Jake Wooten, 2nd Jake Ilardi, 3rd Demarcus James
- Women: 1st Daniela Terol, 2nd Taylor Burnett, 3rd Celina Meehan
13-stair
- Men: 1st Treveon Wade, Lucas Aquino, Koston Eaton
- Women: Niko Sugimoto, Kylie Frank, Shiloh Catori
MVPs
- Men‘s MVP:Jake Wooten
- Women‘s MVP: Niko Sugimoto
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How Red Bull Origin celebrated New York skateboarding
Skaters tackle features during Red Bull Origin at Brooklyn Banks
© Jonathan Mehring / Red Bull Content Pool
Always the antithesis to California’s sunshine and sidewalk surfing aesthetic, New York City was the gritty, big city backlash. Dodging taxis in the streets, skyscrapers in the background of the footage, big wheels for big cracks and rough pavement, and unique skate spots that look unlike anything else in the world. The most famous of these being the undulating Brooklyn Banks.
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Why Brooklyn Banks remains an iconic skateboard spot
The iconic Brooklyn Banks remains a cornerstone of New York skateboarding
© Effie Liu / Red Bull Content Pool
Originally discovered as a mythical spot in the 80s, the Banks became the place for skaters all over New York to meet up, skate, hang out, and then venture out to other parts of the city. It was a forgotten, dilapidated space under the Brooklyn Bridge’s Manhattan side. Skaters shared it with homeless dwellers under the arches, kids from nearby housing projects on BMX bikes, and lots of rats. Closed by the city in 2004, it seemed as though this iconic spot would never be skateable again. But thanks to tireless work by Steve Rodriguez and Rosa Chang from Gotham Park, the unthinkable began to unfold in 2023. First the nine-stair rail, then in 2025 the big banks section, and now, the most famous transition of them all, the small banks.
NYC skateboarding history
Brooklyn Banks timeline:
- Early 1980s: First discovered and skated by local skaters
- 1989: Jeremy Henderson wallrides onto the cover of Thrasher
- 1991: Jamal Simmons on the cover of TransWorld’s April issue shot by Spike Jonze
- 1993: An infamous Brooklyn Banks contest and its chaos is featured in 411VM issue #1
- 1998: Fred Gall’s famous kickflip wallride TransWorld cover.
- 2000: Appears in Tony Hawk Pro Skater
- 2001: Off ramp shut down after 9/11 and its proximity to One Police Plaza
- 2004: Small Banks closed off with police car parking and benches.
- 2010: Big Banks closed off
- 2017: A hole in the fence and lax security saw the Big Banks get sessioned just for one summer
- 2023: Nine-stair rail rebuilt and brought back thanks to Steve Rodriguez, The Skatepark Project and Gotham Park
- 2025: Big Banks reopened with Mayor Adams, Steve Rodriguez, and Rosa Chang from Gotham Park
- 2026: Small Banks reopened, Go Skateboarding Day event with Vans
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Standout moments from Red Bull Origin NYC
10 stair: It was all about Antonio Durao, he’s truly the king of New York at this moment. His otherworldly pop and style held everyone’s attention. He landed a one-foot ollie and a switch kickflip before settling into a battle with his signature switch 360 flip. Time expired, but he did eventually put down a beauty for the iPhone-ready crowd still watching.
Subway train: NYC has the Wu-Tang Clan, and anywhere Jake Wooten goes, he’s got the Wooten Clan. The big transitions on the subway train obstacle were perfect for his skills and flow. He frontside bluntslid across the gap to everyone’s surprise, then shut down the session with an alley-oop frontside 180 to fakie five-0, frontside half Cab back into the transition. The crowd was going nuts, and after a strong showing on the 10-stair rail (front 270 to backside lipslide from the bank to rail), Jake was on his way to winning the day’s MVP trophy brick.
SHUT session: A classic 80s expression session! Anyone was welcome, but you had to ride one of the big, heavy, SHUT Shark completes. Evan Smith put wallrides on the pillar and an alley-oop frontside kickflip, Leo Heinert did a 360 double flip on the bank, and Marisol Concha flicked a mean kickflip.
13 stair: Treveon Wade back Smithed the rail, broke his board, then took one of the bulky SHUT Sharks and did a boardslide down the rail! Not only that, but he also threw a smooth heelflip into the wavy bank on the side of the stairset. A crowd favorite for sure—well deserving of the first-place finish. Jake Wooten was quick on his heels with a hardflip into the bank, while female rippers Shiloh Catori and Celina Meehan both dropped in kickflips in their respective heats. Taylor Burnett made a flawless heelflip into the bank while Jake Ilardi (bigspin frontside boardslide), Koston Eaton (backside overcrook) and Lucas Aquino (frontside bluntslide) chomped the rail.
Niko Sugimoto boardslid the 13, her biggest rail yet judging by the victory lap, and was on her way to winning the day’s MVP for the women.
“This was my first time in New York and my first time skating the Brooklyn Banks, so everything was new to me. Some of the features were honestly pretty scary, but I didn’t really have a strategy. I just tried to commit, stick with the tricks I felt confident in and push myself when it mattered. I’m really happy I was able to put it down when I needed to, and winning the overall event makes the whole experience even more special,” shared Niko Sugimoto.
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Skateboarding legends and a new generation come together
This new gen is skating on hallowed ground, where their predecessors pioneered the East Coast style of today’s skating. The Brooklyn Banks have been featured in Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater video games and the space is recognized as a city park. Graffiti is buffed, there are trash cans and benches—but the banks are still a challenge to hit.
The NYC legends were in attendance and participated in the contest. Zoo York OG Jeff Pang was on the mic, NYC’s legendary female pro Jamie Reyes was judging, the OG SHUT team brought complete set ups and Eli Gesner was filming on an 80s camcorder, it was truly a mix of the past and present—and not too much has changed.
Jeff Pang shared, “After the Banks being closed for so long, and with so many key moments that have happened here, from the ESA contests in the ’80s, to the contests in the ’90s, to Back to the Banks, and then all of a sudden it was shuttered, today feels very significant. There have been events here since the Banks reopened, but to see this group of skaters, from the new guys who are making an impact on skateboarding today to the legends who skated the Banks back in the day, all coming together is something that hasn’t really happened yet. To me, this is another moment in the timeline of the Brooklyn Banks. It’s one of those memories where you’ll look back and say, ‘That was the event.’ I’m going to remember this for the rest of my life. It’s a beautiful thing.”
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The atmosphere and energy that made Red Bull Origin uniquely New York
The locals will tell you, September in New York is the best time of year. The skaters might have had to dodge passing rain, and deal with slippery bricks, but the skate gods smiled on everyone today. A couple locals even climbed the pillars, all the way to the underside of the bridge to get a better vantage point. After the contest ended, the sessions on all sections of the Banks carried on well after dark. Eventually skaters dispersed to all corners of the city, grabbing pizza slices, hitting late-night curb spots, Manhattan restaurants—anything really. With a skateboard under your feet, New York City is a playground.
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