A young boy practices his rollerblading moves at Leon H. Washington Parkin Firestone. Yoshawn Smith operates the South Los Angeles Blade Club on Friday and Saturday afternoons for youngsters 5 to 16.

Courtesy photo

By Shirley Hawkins

Contributing Writer

SOUTH LOS ANGELES — Yoshawn Smith was 10 when he first saw an online video on roller blading.

Intrigued by the speed and agility of the sport, he instantly became hooked.

“I watched a video called ‘What Do You Believe In’ and I saw kids who looked like me,” he said. “I got a chance to see what their skates looked like, and I liked that they were playing rap, techno music and rock when they skated. Seeing blade skaters who looked like me made me even more excited about pursuing the sport.

Smith remembers asking his grandmother to buy

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