Kieran Woolley never dreamed of being an Olympian, in fact he barely took more than a passing interest in the Games as a kid.
But the 17-year-old is now in rare company as one of five members of Australia's first Olympic skateboarding team, joining Poppy Starr Olsen, Keegan Palmer, Hayley Wilson and Shane O'Neill in heading to Tokyo for the sport's Games debut.
Woolley, Olsen and Palmer will contest the Park event, with Wilson and O'Neill to compete in the Street discipline.
Woolley is the third youngest of all the athletes who have been named on Australia's Olympic team to date, with only fellow 17-year-olds Isaac Cooper and Mollie O'Callaghan - who are both on the swim team - younger.
While thrilled with the chance to be a part of history, he admits to being a fairly recent Olympics devotee - with his sporting loves skateboarding and surfing set to be contested for the first time in Tokyo.
"I didn't even watch the Olympics as a kid, I wasn't really fascinated by it at all," Woolley told AAP from his base in the US.
"(It was more) X-Games, Vans Park Series', putting out videos, just getting in the streets.
"It means the world to me (now) - I'm representing the best country ever.
"It's amazing - I can't wait to hopefully make everybody proud and bring home a medal."
The Australian contingent are expected to be right in the medal hunt in Tokyo.
Olsen is world No.4 in Women's Park rankings, right behind 12-year-old British sensation Sky Brown, while Palmer (No.7 in Men's Park) and Wilson (No.9 in Women's Street) are also in the top 10 in their discipline.
O'Neill, who at 31 is by far the oldest member of the group, is a former a world championship gold and silver medallist.
While Friday's announcement was confirmation of the team, all five skaters have known for some time they would be heading to Tokyo.
Woolley learned of his qualification while sitting in a hotel room in Iowa in May. He was amongst a group of Australian skaters who had flown to the US in the hope of earning valuable ranking points to shore up his Olympic qualification at a Dew Series event.
But when three members of the Australian contingent were confirmed to have contracted COVID-19, the entire group was barred from competing - leaving Woolley to rely on results falling his way to secure qualification.
"There were enough points on the table that if certain people made the finals they could get ahead of him," said his dad Mark, who travelled with Kieran to the US.
© AAP 2021
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