A Celebration of Women in Skateboarding: How Shredzilla & Vans are Rewriting the Rules for Women in Skateboarding
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.
JLouw / Blunt Nosegrab fakie
City Scape Ollie
Alba with her own creation – ‘The Thinker’
Karina getting the crowd going on the miniramp.
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.
Bronwyn manuals the grindbox.
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.
Boipleo / Sw Boardslide
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.”
Boipelo front blunts on the way to first place