Legendary skater Tony Hawk is renaming a trick with a troublesome name to better honor the deaf skateboarder who invented it
- Tony Hawk announced in an Instagram that his video game, "Tony Hawk's Pro Skater," will rename a trick called the "mute grab."
- Hawk said the trick was named after an amateur skater named Chris Weddle, who is deaf and used to be known as the "quiet, mute guy."
- Hawk spoke with Weddle, and they decided to rename the trick "The Weddle Grab."
Tony Hawk announced on Instagram on Wednesday that his video game, "Tony Hawk's Pro Skater" will rename a trick called the "mute grab."
Hawk said the trick was named after Chris Weddle, an amateur competitor, who had come up with the trick, a front grab in the air. Weddle, who is deaf, was often called the "quiet, mute guy," so the trick became the "mute grab" or "mute air."
Hawk said in recent years, people have reached out to Weddle to see what he thought about the name and it became "obvious that a different name would have honored [Weddle's] legacy, as he is hearing impaired but not lacking speech."
Hawk said after speaking to Weddle, who he described as "gracious," he decided to rename the trick "The Weddle Grab."
"It's going to be challenging to break the habit of saying the old name but I think Chris deserves the recognition," Hawk wrote.
Furthermore, Hawk wrote that when he informed Weddle of the news, Weddle sent back a photo of him doing the trick in celebration, which Hawk put on his Instagram.
This September, "Tony Hawk's Pro Skater" and "Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2" will be remastered for Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC.
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