Zheng, at 11 years old, makes history as China’s youngest Olympian

An 11-year-old born just before the London 2012 Olympics has made history as China’s youngest Olympian. Zheng Haohao competed in the women’s skateboarding park event in Paris, where she joined a field that included Team GB’s Sky Brown.

Zheng scored a 63.19 in the preliminary round, placing 18th and missing out on the finals won by Australia’s 14-year-old Arisa Trew. Despite taking up skateboarding only at age seven, Zheng leaves France as one of the youngest Olympians ever and has an additional reason to celebrate: she turns 12 this Sunday.

The sport of Olympic skateboarding continues to showcase youthful talent. In Paris, all three medallists were teenagers, with Sky Brown, 16, and Japan’s Kokona Hiraki, 15, repeating their podium finishes from the previous Games. Brazil’s Dora Varella, at 23, was the oldest competitor in the event, while 51-year-old Andy Macdonald, competing for Team GB in the men’s event, is an example that skateboarding isn’t only for the young. Macdonald, who has won eight X Games gold medals, was already a veteran by the time Zheng was born.

The oldest athlete at the Paris Games is Juan Antonio Jimenez of Spain, competing in equestrian at 65. Zheng joins a distinguished list of young Olympians, including Dimitrios Loundras, who was 10 when he won team bronze in gymnastics at the 1896 Games. While his record may have been surpassed by an unidentified seven- or eight-year-old coxswain from a Dutch boat in the 1900 Paris Games, Loundras remains a notable figure.

Marjorie Gestring of the United States is the youngest female gold medallist, winning the 3m springboard diving gold at age 13 in 1936. While Zheng hasn’t surpassed her, a gold medal in Los Angeles four years from now could make for a remarkable 16th birthday present.