Christian Hosoi

Christian Rosha Hosoi (/hoʊˈsɔɪ/ hoh-SOY; born October 5, 1967) is an American professional skateboarder. He is also known by the nicknames "Christ" and "Holmes".

Hosoi was born on October 5, 1967 to a father of Japanese descent from Hawaii, and his mother is Caucasian. He grew up in Los Angeles and Hawaii.

Hosoi started skating at seven or eight years old with veterans such as Shogo Kubo, Tony Alva, Stacy Peralta, and Jay Adams as his idols. His father, Ivan "Pops" Hosoi became the manager of the Marina Del Rey Skatepark, and Christian quit school and spent his time there where he developed his skill. In 1979, as an amateur, Hosoi was sponsored by Powell Peralta. He left Powell Peralta a year later when they would not allow him to turn professional and joined Dogtown Skateboards. Shortly thereafter, Dogtown went out of business. Christian turned pro at the age of 14 with Sims Skateboards.

Christian Hosoi emerged as a competitor of vertical riding alongside such pros as Steve Caballero, Mike McGill, Lester Kasai, and Mark "Gator" Rogowski

Hosoi invented the Christ Air and Rocket Air. In 1984 he formed his own company, Hosoi Skates, first distributed through Skull Skates, then through NHS-INC.

When street skating began to emerge in the mid-to-late '80s, Hosoi showed talent there, winning both the vert and street contests at the Lotte Cup contest in Japan in 1989.

Hosoi's pro career began to falter as a recession hit the US in the early 1990s and the new street skating stars began to overshadow vertical riders in media coverage. Hosoi faced bankruptcy after financial difficulties with a series of failed skateboard companies like Tuff Sk8s, Sk8 Kultur, Milk, and Focus, in addition to a growing addiction to drugs.

In 1995, Hosoi was arrested on two minor offences, and a warrant for his arrest was issued for failing to appear in court. To avoid arrest, Hosoi stopped attending competitions and demos, including declining an invitation to the first X Games (then the Extreme Games), which was going to be marketed as a renewed rivalry between Hawk and Hosoi.

Hosoi was finally captured in January 2000 at the Honolulu airport. He was apprehended while attempting to transport nearly 1.5 lb (0.68 kg) of crystal methamphetamine from Los Angeles to Honolulu. He was charged with trafficking with the intent to distribute. He was sentenced to ten years' incarceration, of which he served four and was released from the San Bernardino Central Detention Center in June 2004.