When it comes to being the street skater, Azar is the man. “I don’t have a signature trick or style, I just like going fast and powerful. I try to keep it pretty broad and freestyle, too, people get bored of seeing the same thing over and over,” he says.

When not riding for Red Bull, Azar travels, shoots skating videos and works as team rider manager for clothing label Volcom. He is heavily involved in promoting Australian skating and was the brains behind the Red Bull Skate of Origin. In this event, four-man teams from Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria go mate against mate, state against state to take home the title and a cash prize.
Azar says, “I sat down with Red Bull and to figure out a skate comp and the football State of Origin was on at the time, so I came up with the Skate of Origin. It’s been two years running now and it’s getting bigger. It’s great, Red Bull pump a lot of money into it, skaters love it and everyone who gets to go in the event just loves it too.”

Supporting local talent

Sydney will always be home to this jetsetter, who grew up in North Curl Curl on the Northern Beaches and now lives nearby at Freshwater. He moved to Australia’s skateboarding capital, Melbourne, when he was 17, but moved back after a year, vowing to stay put. Despite having skated all over America and Europe, plus Thailand, Malaysia and Hong Kong, Azar says Australia is where it’s at. “At the moment, we’re pretty much on top. We’re breeding some of the best skaters in the world and where we’re at now is really good. We just need to continue supporting Australian skateboarding,” he says.