Skateboarding has always been built on a culture of not asking for permission. But for a long time, that freedom didn’t extend to everyone, it was almost always a male dominated.
That’s changing. Globally, women’s participation in skateboarding has surged by more than 790% in the past decade. In South Africa, that shift is being led by a generation of women reshaping the scene on their own terms, from Boipelo Awuah, the youngest African skateboarder to compete at the Olympics and founder of 053 Skateboarding For Girls, to Melissa “Suzy Snakes” Williams, a former Olympian herself and founder of Skate Smiles Club.
Melissa has been carving out space (literally and figuratively) for women in skateboarding for years. What started as small community sessions has evolved into full-blown park takeovers, a network of monthly Women’s Skate Nights, and one of the most anticipated events in the country’s female skate scene: Shredzilla – Queen of the Park.
Launched in 2023 and proudly supported by Vans, Shredzilla is a celebration of individuality, creativity, and joy on wheels. Built by women, for women, it brings skaters of all levels together to hype each other up and remind us that skateboarding doesn’t belong to just one kind of person.
Rolling into the Unknown
When Melissa first picked up a skateboard, there were no girls, role models, or blueprint. Just a local play park run, a concrete snake run full of boys, and the unshakable feeling that she was meant to roll there too.
Back then, skating as a girl meant carving your own path, usually alone. “I didn’t know a single other girl skater growing up,” she says. “You’d hear rumors, but we were all scattered. It wasn’t until after high school that I finally met other women skating.”
But that was 1997. Fast forward to now, and South Africa’s skate scene tells a different story—and it’s one that Melissa helped rewrite, alongside a new wave of women like Boipelo and support from Vans.
Shredzilla 2025: The Takeover Continues
On Saturday, 9 August, Cape Town’s female skate scene exploded as girls and women gathered for Shredzilla’s third year. “It’s always a special day for the women’s skate scene and everyone has a really good time together,” says Melissa. “This was the third annual event, and it hasn’t changed too much since the first one, which I love. The energy is still the same.”
2025 did introduce one fresh new addition: a time-trial race for the under-10s, inspired by the flood of new skaters showing up to sessions each month. “Since the last contest, we noticed more young girls coming to our sessions, and we wanted to create space for them. We wanted to give them the chance to experience the joy of standing on the podium and winning cool prizes alongside their friends,” Melissa says.
“There are so many favourite moments, but the highlight is always the prizegiving at the end,” she continues. “The confetti bombs keep getting bigger and bigger every year. It’s also great to see how supportive the parents are, and how the kids are able to share the special day with them.”
As the day winded down and the confetti cannons went off, Boipelo, one of the event’s most consistent names, was crowned the Shredzilla champion for the third year running. “Shredzilla has had a huge impact on the skate scene in South Africa,” says Boipelo. “It gives us, as female skaters, a platform to express ourselves in a male-dominated space.”
The Power of Thinking Smaller
For Melissa, not having female skate role models growing up was a kind of resistance training. She had to learn to become what she had never seen. Now, she’s making sure the next generation doesn’t have to squint into the distance to find someone like them. And it’s working.
Shredzilla is a joyful rebellion against the tired idea that skateboarding has only enough room for a few girls if they “shred hard enough.” Here, there’s no need to perform toughness to earn space. “Skating can be a lot of different things to different people,” Melissa says. “Some people are pushing hard to progress, others just skate when they can. What inspires me is seeing everyone doing it their own way.”
In a world obsessed with going big, her vision is refreshingly countercultural. The instinct to scale is there, and Shredzilla could easily become a national series or a flashy media moment. But Melissa’s not interested in hype for hype’s sake. “I used to always think bigger and try to do what I see happening overseas,” she says. “But these days I’m starting to think smaller. I know that sounds weird, but I’m trying to think more about what the community needs and what would be the best for them.”
That mindset shift is a radical move in a culture built on competition. Instead of chasing scale, Shredzilla is digging in and making local matter. “It’s always an evolution,” she adds. “The team at Vans are really encouraging and supportive when it comes to making it the best it can be for the community.”
This Is What Rebellion Looks Like
Skateboarding has always been about counterculture, but what if the most radical thing now is joy and community? What if the new rebellion is showing up with your friends, taking over the park, and blasting a confetti cannon just because?
For Melissa, those questions aren’t rhetorical. Shredzilla is proof that progress doesn’t have to come with ego, and that leadership can look like friendship. More than just an event, it represents a movement that’s as much about identity and community as it is about competition.
For skaters like Boipelo, who’ve competed on both local and global stages, it hits different. “There’s a bigger movement behind Shredzilla beyond being a skate competition,” she says. “It focuses on uplifting the female skate scene by empowering us to strive for more and see our potential come to fruition with the impact we’re making.”
So skate like a girl. Be loud about it. Build things. Break things. Wear glitter if you want to. This is what the future of skateboarding looks like—and it’s already rolling.