Olympic Skateboarder Nyjah Huston Fractures Skull

Nyjah Huston is starting 2026 with a reminder of just how unforgiving his sport can be. The 31-year-old skateboarding star said Monday he fractured both his skull and an eye socket in a crash in Tempe, Arizona, per CBS News. On Instagram, he shared photos of paramedics checking him over at a skate park along with others showing him in a hospital bed and being transported by wheelchair. "A harsh reminder how death defying skating massive rails can be," he wrote, adding that he's "taking it one day at a time" and hoping others had a better New Year than he did.

Huston is among the most decorated skateboarders in history, with a bronze medal from the Paris Olympics, seven world titles, and 15 golds from the X Games. It's unclear whether his injuries will affect his plans to compete at the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles. In a 2024 interview, he stressed that what fans see—contest runs and polished video parts—hides the reality that skateboarding is "really 90% falling," a statistic his latest wipeout appears to underscore. But for him, the sport is "an addiction," Huston said. "We live to fight another day," he wrote Monday. "Stay strong; we know you'll be back," commented skateboard legend Tony Hawk, per Olympics.com.