THE LIFE OF X A Brief History of the X Games

The story of X begins in 1993 and evolves to 2002 with announcement of the X Games Global Championship. Along the way, ESPN has added the Asian X Games, EXPN Invitational, Winter X Games, Tony Hawk’s Gigantic Skatepark Tour and much more. This is a brief timeline on how the X Games arrived as the world’s signature action sports event.
1993 ESPN Management decides to devote significant resources to the creation of an international gathering of action sport athletes. A team assembles to develop the concept that originated in the ESPN Programming Department.
1994 At a press conference at Planet Hollywood in New York City on April 12, ESPN announces that the first Extreme Games will be held in Rhode Island in late June of 1995.
1995 From June 24 through July 1, the Extreme Games are held in Newport, Providence and Middletown, RI, and Mount Snow, VT. Athletes compete in nine sport categories, including windsurfing, bungee jumping and mountain biking.
198,000 spectators attend the first Extreme Games. Seven sponsors -- Advil, Mountain Dew, Taco Bell, Chevy Trucks, AT&T, Nike and Miller Lite Ice -- lend their support to the event.
Because of the enthusiastic response from the athletes, organizers, spectators, producers and sponsors, ESPN decides to hold the event the following year. In October, it is announced that Rhode Island is the location for the 1996 event.
1996 In January, the event name Extreme Games officially changes to the X Games. The primary reasons for the change are to allow easier translation to international audiences and better branding opportunities.
The X Games Road Show, a two-day touring interactive expo, debuts in April - eventually reaching 12 cities including Boston, San Francisco and Miami. In early June, the X Games’ first international exhibition takes place. In the shadow of ancient temples in Shanghai, exhibitions are performed in bicycle stunt, in-line skating and skateboarding.
In late June, approximately 200,000 spectators turn out for the X Games in Newport, RI. Kiteskiing, windsurfing and mountain biking are replaced by wakeboarding, while ESPN Sportszone reported live via the Internet.
The site of the first-ever ESPN Winter X Games is announced at a press conference on June 30. Snow Summit Mountain Resort in Big Bear Lake, CA, is named the site for competitions in snowboarding, ice climbing, snow mountain bike racing, shovel racing and a crossover multi-sport.
ESPN announces in July that the X Games will be moving to San Diego, CA, for the 1997 and 1998 X Games.
1997 From January 30 through February 2, the inaugural Winter X Games broadcast to 198 countries in 21 different languages. More than 38,000 spectators make the trek to Big Bear Lake for four days of competition.
In March, the X Trials, a qualifying event for the X Games, begins in Providence, RI. One month later, a similar event is held in Orlando, FL.
From June 20 through June 28, a record crowd of 221,000 fans watches in San Diego and Oceanside as the third annual X Games continues to impress. Big Air snowboarding replaces bungee jumping and amazes on-lookers with a 10-story jump onto the beach.
In September, ESPN announces that the host of the 1998 Winter X Games is Crested Butte Mountain Resort in Crested Butte, CO. New sports to the Winter X Games include freeskiing, snowmobile snocross and skiboarding.
Also in September, the X Games Xperience travels to Disneyland Paris, France. Xperience is held in conjunction with Eurosport.
In December, citing overwhelming success, the X Games are officially invited back to San Diego for 1998 by Mayor Susan Golding.
1998 25,000 spectators gathered over four days in January in Crested Butte, for the second annual Winter X Games.
In April, the first-ever international X Games qualifying event is held. The Asian X Games features 200 athletes from the Pacific Rim competing in Phuket, Thailand for a limited amount of spots in the San Diego X Games.
In May, the second year of X Trials competition begins. The 1998 X Trials appear in St. Petersburg, FL and Virginia Beach, VA, indicating that interest in action sports is growing rapidly across the country.
In June, the X Games tops its attendance mark for the fourth consecutive year as more than 233,000 spectators flock to Mariner’s Point in San Diego for the X Games.
ESPN announces in September that the X Games will move to San Francisco for the years 1999 and 2000. In October, ESPN establishes their office on Treasure Island in San Francisco.
1999 Crested Butte is once again the site for the third annual Winter X Games. More than 30,000 attend the event in January, which features more disciplines, including women’s freeskiing.
In late April and early May, the third year of X Trials qualifiers take place in Louisville, KY, and Richmond, VA. Crowds top 30,000 for the four-day events, with the Xperience, an interactive spectator area, taking place in conjunction with the competitions.
On May 8, ESPN announces that the 2000 and 2001 Winter X Games will take place in Mount Snow, VT.
From June 27 - July 4, the X Games in San Francisco attracts nearly 275,000 spectators. Those in attendance were treated to Tony Hawk’s first-ever skateboarding 900 and the X Games debut of Moto X.
2000 The Winter X Games are held February 3-6 in Mount Snow, VT. The first Winter X of the millennium features the largest crowds to date and the debut of Winter X on the East Coast. The new Snowboarding SuperPipe competition enters the mix of favorites such as Snowboarding Big Air, Snowboarder X and Slopestyle, FreeSkiing, Skiboarding, SnoCross and Snow Mountain Bike Racing. The 2000 Winter X Games drew more than 83,500 spectators to this small southern Vermont town.
From March through June, the ESPN B3 and X Trials events take place across the country, qualifying athletes to compete in the San Francisco X Games. The B3 tour begins in Lake Havasu, AZ, re-visits Louisville and St. Petersburg and ends in Nashville, TN.
June through July, some of the world’s top skaters and BMX riders hit the road traveling to skate parks across the United States as part of the inaugural Tony Hawk Gigantic Skatepark Tour.
The 2000 X Games take place August 17-22 in San Francisco, CA, on Piers 30/32. ESPN adds the Moto X Step-Up contest and announces the launch of four new ventures: Action Sports and Music Awards, International X Games Qualifiers, X Games Global Challenge and an agreement with Woodward Camps to begin building skateparks across the country.
2001 The 2001 Winter X Games are February 1-4 for the second year in Mount Snow, VT. Moto X Big Air at the Winter Games makes its debut. During the event, ESPN announces the nominees for the first annual Action Sports and Music Awards to be held on April 7 at the Universal Amphitheatere in Los Angeles, CA.
From March through June, the ESPN B3 and X Trials events travel across the country, qualifying athletes to compete in the 2001 X Games in Philadelphia, PA. The qualifying events start with a B3 in Anaheim, CA, and then re-visit Louisville. The X Trials kickoff in Grand Prairie, TX, with more than 35,000 spectators in attendance and end at Lake Compounce in Bristol, CT, with more than 29,000 fans on hand over a two-day period.
The inaugural Action Sports and Music Awards are held on April 7 to a packed crowd of 6,000 at the Universal Amphitheatre in Los Angeles. The event unites action sports athletes, sport legends, musicians and Hollywood celebrities, presenting the most explosive evening in the history of action sports. LL Cool J, Rebecca Romijn-Stamos and Chris Klein host the event, which includes performances from the original members of Black Sabbath, Ben Harper & the Innocent Criminals, and more.
Philadelphia hosts the seventh annual X Games, August 17-22. More than 300 athletes from around the world compete for medals and nearly $1 million in total prize money. Downhill BMX makes its debut at the 2001 X Games, which is held at the Woodward Camp in central Pennsylvania. Other events at the event include Aggressive In-Line Skating, Bicycle Stunt, Moto X, Skateboarding, Street Luge, Speed Climbing and Wakeboarding. The X Games are held in and around the First Union Complex, which includes a first inside/outside venue experience for the 234,950 spectators in attendance.
Aspen, CO is selected to host the sixth-annual Winter X Games to be held January 17-20 at the resort’s Buttermilk Mountain.
2002 Winter X Games VI is held at the world-renown resort of Aspen, CO from January 17-20. Two new skiing disciplines are added: Skiing Slopestyle and Skiing SuperPipe. The event draws 36,300 spectators, as well as the entire 2002 US Olympic Snowboard Freestyle team, all of who compete in Snowboarding SuperPipe.
The second annual ESPN Action Sports and Music Awards, fueled by Mountain Dew, are held on April 13 at the Universal Amphitheatre in Los Angeles. Jay Mohr hosts the event, which honors action sports athletes and the musical artists that drive this culture. The night is filled with icons of the action sports, music and entertainment world as celebrities and athletes grace the stage in a one-of-a kind awards show. Musical performances by the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Jay-Z with an all-star band, X-Ecutioners featuring Xzibit and Static X, Unwritten Law and 3rd Strike entertained the crowd of 6,000.
ESPN’s qualifying contests are held in Grand Prairie, TX from April 26-28 and Gwinnett County, GA from May 17-19. The EXPN Invitational at GPX Lone Star Park marks the second year for an event held at the venue. This marked the first trip and contest at the X Games Skatepark in Georgia. Athletes compete for a piece of the $200,000 purse and a spot at X Games VIII in Philadelphia, PA, August 15-19.
On May 28, ESPN announces a new annual team event, The X Games Global Championship, which will feature two distinct venues hosting competitions in summer and winter action sports simultaneously. Six teams of the world’s top athletes will be grouped together by their region of origin to compete in the four-day event, May 15-18, 2003.
At one X Games Global Championship site, X Games sports such as Skateboard, Bicycle Stunt, Moto X and Aggressive In-line Skate will be featured, while Winter X competitions such as Snowboard and Ski will take place at a different venue at the same time. Results from both venues will be combined for an overall team score. The primary outcome of the entire event will be to crown one of the six teams the X Games Global Champion.