By ESTHER LAUAKI
A two-year-old Wyndham boy has become an overnight global sensation after video footage of him landing tricks on his skateboard went viral.
Kahlei Stone-Kelly from Tarneit can only just walk and is still in a nappy but is capturing international attention for his remarkable skating skills.
He comes from a family of skaters and took to the sport when he was just six months old.
The video, which shows the tiny trickster in a nappy skating over curbs, down stairs and zipping around street corners, was posted on the Internet by his dad to show family back home in New Zealand.
A series of videos that followed received thousands of views and the home phone hasn’t stopped ringing since.
Dad Meka Kelly says Kahlei would skate all day if he was allowed.
“It gets to the point where if I don’t take him out for a skate he will start to play up, that how much he loves it. I was just being a proud dad. I was surprised to see him be good at it straight away so I recorded him for our family overseas.
“We’ve had calls from people in Mexico, Washington, Argentina and even Japan. There have been a few skating contract offers but we’re taking it very slow. We just want to skate and do what we do best. We’ll start small and work our way up.”
Worldwide fame hasn’t fazed the talented toddler who fuels up on juice boxes and loves skating with his seven older siblings.
The family moved to Melbourne last year to chase their skating dreams and have embraced the skating community with open arms.
“We really wanted to get serious about skating and came to Australia to look for more opportunities here. We are so proud of all our kids, whether it’s skating, scooters or bikes; it’s just about getting them out there and letting them try everything. I’d encourage all parents and kids to be active and support your local parks,” Meka says.
Mum, April Stone says she’s thrilled that all her children love to be active.
“It gets them out of the house and keeps them active and out of trouble. It’s making them ‘push play’ every day, make friends – that’s a good thing. Moving to Australia has been great because it’s opened up so many opportunities for our kids,” she said.
She admits she has some reservations about her family’s favourite pastime.
“As a mother I’m always concerned about their safety and that will never go away. This is what they love to do and I’m a big supporter of whatever they want to do.”
