Antoine Laurent

Welcome to the Team Antoine Laurent.

Raised in the small Provençal village of Maillane, Antoine’s skating has been built far from the spotlight - through countless sessions, road trips and the forced hand of growing up in provincial France that makes approaching spots a whole new frontier away from the bright lights of the major cities. Now carving out a niche for himself and part of a new generation carrying French skateboarding forward, you can find Antoine showing up across France, in Marseille, Bordeaux and further afield brining his unique ‘French Touch’ to spots with his Vans counterparts Lucien Gourdal and Matteo Vandeputte as a dynamic trio. Having come up the ranks in the Vans France team, we’re stoked to welcome Antoine to the European program and caught up with the man himself to talk about growing up in the south of France, finding his place within the Vans family, and why the best skateboarding often says the least.

Alors Antoine, give us a little background on yourself.

My Name is Antoine Laurent, I’m 21. I’m pretty much living between Bordeaux and where I grew up in a little village called Maillane, close to Avignon and about an hour from Marseille. And I skate!

Where are you right now?

Now I am in Maillane. It’s where I grew up, it’s small but really beautiful spot in the Provence region of France. I guess it’s famous for the Pont de Midi bridge. We don’t have much - but what we have is really nice.
 

Talk us through your journey in skateboarding.

From what I remember it was my Dad that first put me on skateboard when I was six or around that age. From there, I pretty much skated every day but it really kicked in when I was 11 or so at high school where I met more friends that would skate and we’d meet at the skate park. Then, when I was 16 or 17 we would start to move around a little bit and actually go to bigger cities and skate in the street and start to film. In Covid, Sam Partaix started to flow me some shoes and I was unofficially ‘on’ Vans or however you would want to say it.

Now I’m really on the team and it feels insane, it’s the best crew. I’m so stoked.

How is that culture or that progression of coming from a small town skating, compared to that of a big city?

When I was kid, going to the skate park I would see some skaters but now I’m really the only one which is a little sad. It’s great to have that park but I’m really now heading to Marseille to skate the most as that’s really where the scene is at. My real crew is in Bordeaux though, I spend a lot of time there with my boys Achille Isnard and Lawrence Ravail who I skate and film with the most.

The scene in Bordeaux is really sick, it’s so vibrant. There’s so many skaters, you can always find a spot and someone to go film with, it’s really nice and I feel at home there.

How’s the difference in the scenes between say Bordeaux and Marseille, or Bordeaux and Paris.

Well it’s a smaller city than Paris or Marseille so it’s just easier, it’s more compact. You can see your friends easier in the day, skate wherever you want, if you have a bike it’s super easy to move around the place. There are a lot of different crews and they are all so welcoming, from kids crew to older crews – everyone is really nice.

And how does a day in Maillane stack up next to a day in Bordeaux? Deux salles, deux ambiances?

Well, in Maillane I’ll help my dad a bit gardening and landscaping, cutting trees and stuff. It’s a good zone to chill, we’ll hit the river when it’s hot, then in the evening go and skate either in the skatepark or find a street spot I’ve been eyeing up.

In Bordeaux, it’s just skating. Wake up at one of the boys’ houses and have a coffee, maybe warm up at the park, wait for the lads to finish work and then go film in the street. Then a few beers, and we’re good.

I really like the mixture of both places. I don’t know if I want to live all my life in the same place, I really like to move. I like variety. Sometimes I spend say a whole month in Bordeaux and I’m over it, then it’s time to go on a trip or head to my hometown.

How do you feel about the next generation of French skaters?
I think it’s pretty good, there’s lots of good kids and raw talent coming up through the ranks but I feel I’m still pretty young to talk about that..
 

I mean, I was referring really to your generation…

Oh mine? It’s insane, there is Lucien, Matteo, Hugo – it’s an insane generation and I’m really lucky to be part of it. We’re working on a video with Lucien and Matteo, we have the deadline pretty soon, we’ve been on a few trips and need a bit more footage. It’s been a bit of a mission but I’ve really been enjoying it. We’ve been to Barcelona and Helsinki together which has been pretty really fun. A few stories for sure… We had the last trip in Bilbao recently and I’m excited to see how it all turns out.

What and who inspires you in skating?

There are so many videos I could name, I don’t know where to start – I watch them all. I love to watch Rowan Zorilla, he is my favourite but honestly, I would say skating with my friends is the most inspiring, it pushes me to shred the best I can. I’m deeply inspired by style as well, anyone that looks good on their board and skates fast….

And outside of skating? What gets you fired up?

I really like mountain biking, it’s a totally different sensation but something I really like to do aside from skating. My Cousin is a pro mountain biker and he’s so good, it’s really cool to go out with him and feel something new. I go near my parents house, we have a few trails and stuff but I like to go in summers to Savoie, near the Alps with my cousin.

I guess there are some similarities with skating in terms of mentality but at the same time it’s a totally different world.

Outside of skating, my Dad is a huge example for me, I like hanging with him and helping him at work landscaping when I am at home.

How does it feel to be on the Vans team?
It’s such a good group, everyone shreds and has a smile whilst doing so. It has to be one of the best crews out there. Aside from Lucien and Matteo there’s also Doobie and a bunch of other legends who really take care of each other and there’s a good bunch of Frenchies on the crew.

Favourite Vans shoe to skate in?

The Rowan 2. I really like the shape and I feel good on my board in these shoes.

What are your aspirations for the future?

Pretty hard to say, but my dream is to keep having fun skating and be with my friends and family and do what I like to do.

Any last words? A message for the internet? A message to your former self?

Try and live like Chicken Joe. If you know, you know…