Bombette Martin is the Gen Z multi-hyphenate Olympian you need to know

First things first, how did the Olympics happen? Tell us everything.

Bombette: I started skateboarding when I was nine and began with local competitions in New York City, where I was born and raised. I was just doing it for fun, really, but then somehow with the competitions, one thing led to another. I followed through all the Olympic qualifiers but then Covid happened so 2020 became a big break which gave me an extra year to train. The Great Britain Qualifiers were in 2021, from there I made it into the international competition and ranked 14th in the world. This gave me enough points to make it to the Olympics and that was an absolutely incredible experience.

It was really strange when we got to Tokyo though, Covid was still fizzling out so there were about 75 checkpoints between us leaving the States and reaching the Olympic Village. And once we got there, athletes were allowed to leave their rooms for like half an hour a day to go for a walk but otherwise it was just between the skatepark venue and back. I really do want to go to Tokyo again to see the city, I never got to do that!

Why did you decide to skate for Great Britain and not the States?

Bombette: Well, my father is British and I have dual citizenship. It was somehow always more appealing to me to skate for Great Britain because the whole USA team is based out in California. Since I’m so far out in New York, it may as well feel like a whole different country because we’re so far removed from each other. And honestly, I didn’t want to be part of all the California drama so I decided to go further east and Great Britain worked out.

It must’ve been hard to compete on the world stage and face rejection at the upcoming Olympics. How do you deal with the stress of it all?

Bombette: Honestly, people are kind of shocked at my response because I’m doing okay. I guess when someone doesn’t qualify the first time and then tries again and doesn’t make it, it’s their end all and a horrible feeling. But since I’ve made it to the Olympics once and I’ve been through so much these past couple years with injury and competitions, that I’m okay it’s done. Obviously I tried really hard to qualify but I mentally prepared myself that if it doesn’t work out, it’s not the end of the world.Frankly there’s so many things outside [skating] — like fashion and modelling — that interest me so I can focus on that too.

I have tried a couple different sports therapists as well. But I think the biggest thing in skateboarding is fear, that’s the only real thing that’s holding you back. So my focus is always on getting out of my head, sometimes I journal because it helps me put everything down so I don’t go crazy.

Where does your interest in fashion stem from?

Bombette: Growing up in New York — and it being such a fashion epicentre — my love for fashion kind of came naturally. As a kid it started off as a love for shopping but also because I was surrounded by fashion all my life. My mom always had a sewing machine out with her and my dad, he runs a screen printing factory and previously made sneakers in Japan. Currently my mom also makes labour gowns for pregnant women but earlier she had her own swimwear line.

So I remember playing on a sewing machine and being in and around the factory when I was really young. While I can sew and make my own clothes, it doesn’t look super great up close — I still have to be professionally trained and get an education in fashion. A couple years ago, when P448 wanted to create sneakers and step into the skateboarding world, my dad’s friend introduced them to me and that was like a dream come true. I’ve done multiple drops with them now, every sneaker has a little bit of me in it so my favourite colour red, my lucky number or just angel numbers.