Celebrating 10 years of X Games in Los Angeles, Calif., ESPN will kick off X Games LA 2012 from June 28 to July 1, one month earlier than previous years.
The first wave of athletes invited to compete at X Games Los Angeles 2012 was released today. The invited athlete list and competition schedule is constantly being updated and is subject to change.
This year's events will take place in downtown Los Angeles' L.A. LIVE venues and event spaces, including STAPLES Center, Nokia Theatre L.A. LIVE, Event Deck at L.A. LIVE, the new downtown rally car street circuit and the debut of the Big Air ramp on Chick Hearn Court. More than 200 athletes will compete for medals and prize money in skateboarding, BMX, freestyle motocross and Rally.
"ESPN is thrilled to be celebrating 10 years of X Games in Los Angeles and to showcase the incredible progression and excitement that fans have come to anticipate each year," said Scott Guglielmino, senior vice president of programming and X Games. "The world-class athletes, competition and distinctive elements of X Games Los Angeles truly embody the global nature and appeal of action sports."
ESPN, ESPN2 and ABC will combine to televise 21 hours of live X Games Los Angeles competition in high definition and on ESPN 3D. Outside the United States, X Games Los Angeles will be seen across the globe, including live telecasts in Africa, Asia, Australia, Brazil, Israel, Mexico, Middle East, New Zealand and South America.
The first round of invited athletes include:
Brian Deegan (USA) -- 11-time X Games medalist and freestyle motocross legend looks to defend his 2011 X Games RallyCross gold.
Nyjah Huston (USA) -- Three-time X Games medalist and defending Skateboard Street gold medalist.
Steve McCann (AUS) -- Six-time X Games medalist and defending BMX Big Air gold and Vert silver medalist.
Marisa Dal Santo (USA) -- Three-time X Games gold medalist and current defending X Games Skateboard Street gold medalist.
Daniel Dhers (VEN) -- Four-time X Games gold medalist and current defending BMX Freestyle Park gold medalist will attempt a three-peat.
Nate Adams (USA) -- Three-time X Games gold and defending Moto X Freestyle and Speed & Style gold medalist.
Pierre-Luc Gagnon (CAN) -- Five-time X Games gold medalist and returning Skateboard Vert silver medalist.
Vicki Golden (USA) -- Defending Moto X Racing gold medalist.
Jamie Bestwick (GBR) -- Nine-time and defending BMX Freestyle Vert gold medalist.
Taddy Blazusiak (POL) -- Gold medalist of the inaugural Moto X Enduro X Men's event.
Tickets for X Games Los Angeles 2012 will be available for purchase May 24 at Ticketmaster locations, TicketMaster.com/XGames and the box office at STAPLES Center. A pre-sale ticket offer begins May 21.
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