female skateboarders

Skateboarding has long been a male-dominated sport; a survey in 2002 estimated that only 26 percent of skateboarders are female.

In the early years of the sport, few female skaters gained widespread visibility; Peggy Oki, Ellen O'Neal, and Ellen Berryman were a few who achieved fame in the 1970s. The skateboarding boom in the 1990s, coupled with an overall advancement in womens' sports, produced more female skaters than in previous decades. Skaters such as Elissa Steamer and Cara-Beth Burnside elevated women's skateboarding to a new level. This trend continued into the new millennium with Amy Caron, Vanessa Torres, and Lyn-z Adams Hawkins. Presently, skateboarding competitions for women can be seen at all major skateboarding events, such as the X-games, the Gravity Games, and the Slam City Jam.

There are many female-only skate companies, sessions, and camps to help advance the female skateboarding movement. An alliance of professional female skaters has also been established. There have been two major skate films focusing on female skaters - Getting Nowhere Faster and AKA: Girl Skater.