The energetic Didal is taking things step by step.
It has been an arduous eight months for Margielyn Didal, at least from a health standpoint.
The 24-year-old, who charmed the sporting world in the Tokyo Games in 2021 with her infectious energy and effervescent smile, has been on the long road to recovery after getting surgery on her left ankle, which she fractured back in October 2022 while competing at the Red Bull Skate Level.
But it appears she is getting back to her previous world-class form.
On Saturday, Didal posted on her Instagram a video of her skateboarding and pulling off two tricks, the first of which was a frontside nosegrind, which seems simple enough for an Olympic-level skateboarder like Didal.
Her second trick, a 360 flip, was a lot more difficult, and it got her all pumped up—especially since it was the first time she was able to pull it off since she started skating again two months ago.
“8 months since the post op, 2 months since I started skating and hype to land my first 360 flip again,” Didal wrote in her post.
Take a look:
With the former Olympian seemingly on the mend, it appears she can now look ahead to restarting her quest for an Olympic return—a goal that she intends to accomplish one step at a time.
“Step by step. It’s not really ‘I want to go there, that’s the goal,’” Didal said in a feature published in Olympics.com last year. “Everything is about taking it slowly. Going to the contests, trying to qualify and trying to make it.”
Unfortunately for the Filipina skateboarding icon, her injury set her back two qualifiers behind, having been forced to miss the Rio World Skate Park World Championships 2022 and the Rio World Skate Street World Championships 2022, both held in Brazil.
But that dream of making it back to the Olympics is very much alive, what with the Olympic Qualifier Series still scheduled starting March of next year.
With Didal pulling off 360 flips now, it is a safe bet that she will be ready to compete again real soon.