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Articles • Pro-Posições 33 • 2022 • https://doi.org/10.1590/1980-6248-2020-0102EN   copy

Dilemmas of a sport under-construction: an analysis of the letter section in the Overall magazine (1985 - 1990) 1 5 In the 1970s, in Brazil, skateboarding was a novelty – initially nicknamed surfinho (tiny surf) – and practiced by sectors of the high middle class. There was a concern of parents and families with the risks offered by the sport, but it was not marginalized. This marginalization appeared especially in the 1980s with the development of street skate, a modality in which skateboarders interacted with public equipment, such as stairs, rails, sidelines, walls, etc. Besides this, the association to punk rock and the alternative look contributed to its marginalization (Brandão, 2014). 2 6 Recurrent elements in the letters allow us to affirm that writers were mainly young and practitioners. Young because they characterized themselves as such or by other elements (such as living with the parents and/or depending on parental authorization to circulate in certain areas of the urban space and/or do certain things – for instance, skateboarding). And practitioners because they identified themselves as so and also because the content of many letters refer to the universe of the practice, including doubts (for example, how to do a certain maneuver or how to build a wooden ramp) and testimonies of persecutions. 3 7 We use here the notion of Californian sports by Pociello (1995), because most of these physical activities (skateboarding, BMX, surf, windsurf, body board etc.) were developed and initially underwent a process of sportivization in the state of California (USA).

Authorship SCIMAGO INSTITUTIONS RANKINGS

Abstract

This article aims to investigate the dilemmas surrounding skateboarding through the letters published in Overall magazine. This magazine had 19 issues between 1985 and 1990, and in all of them, 107 letters were published during this period. The 1980s can be understood as a key moment for the sportivization of this activity, however, it paradoxically marks the period in which ambivalent conceptions about skateboarding are triggered, especially about its practice on the streets. Such letters reflect this paradox, while many skateboarders felt confident that Overall existed as an element to foster this activity as a sport, others complained about the restrictions and prohibitions the practice entailed.

Keywords
Youth; Skateboarding; Letters; 1980s

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