12-year-old skateboarder Gui Khury lands 1080 at X Games to win gold medal, competing against surprise participant Tony Hawk

In 1999, Tony Hawk became the first skateboarder to land the first-ever 900 in competition. There’s not a better-known moment in X Games history.

Hawk retired from pro skating competition in 2003, but the 53-year-old made a surprise appearance at the X Games on Friday in Vista, CA (he lives just miles away in Encinitas), and participated in the Vert Best Trick competition.

.@tonyhawk ❌ #XGames 2021
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀@pacificobeer Skateboard Vert Best Trick pic.twitter.com/OAQenkBV3p

— X Games (@XGames) July 17, 2021

Amazingly, a surprise appearance from the skateboarding GOAT was topped by a performance from a 12-year-old for the best moment of the event.

Gui Khury became the first skateboarder to land a 1080 on a (non-mega) vert ramp, and in doing so, became the youngest gold medalist in X Games history.

https://twitter.com/IRUKLugo/status/1416197447051796482

53-year-old @tonyhawk, skating at #XGames for the first time since 2003.

The parallels between Hawk and Gui Khury: 22 years ago at X Games SF 1999, Hawk became the first to land a 900 on a vert ramp. Hawk did this 9 years before Khury was born (December 18, 2008). pic.twitter.com/NrZs5vzF80

— X Games (@XGames) July 17, 2021

You can't script this stuff: 12-year-old Gui Khury just became the world's first skateboarder to land a 1080 on a (non-mega) vert ramp @XGames, 22 years after Tony Hawk landed the first 900…and he did it in front of Tony Hawk, in a contest Hawk CAME OUT OF RETIREMENT to skate

— Michelle Bruton (@MichelleBruton) July 17, 2021

As an 11-year-old, Khury became the first skateboarder to ever land a 1080 on a traditional competition-size vert ramp.

11-year-old Gui Khury is the first skateboarder to ever hit a 1080 on a vert ramp 🤯

Khury wasn't even born when Tony Hawk hit his record 900 back in 1999. (via @XGames) pic.twitter.com/R7OhnodqqY

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) May 9, 2020

So, he has done the 1080 before, but never in competition (and never while competing against Hawk, of course). And maybe he’ll even take things to another level when he actually enters his teenage years!