Yuto Horigome defends skateboard gold over USA's Eaton, Huston - ESPN

Japan's Yuto Horigome is a back-to-back Olympic gold medalist in men's street skateboarding after scoring a nearly perfect 97.08 on his fifth and final trick Monday to pass Americans Jagger Eaton and Nyjah Huston.

Horigome's win came in front of a charged-up Paris crowd that was much different than the empty stands in Tokyo three years ago, when skateboarding made its Olympic debut.

«It means everything,» Horigome said. «It feels like a dream, a living dream. It's crazy. Tokyo, no one was there, no cr.owds, so I'm very happy this time [with] all the fans here. It's a special moment.»

Horigome finished 0.1 points ahead of Eaton, who despite a brilliant showing had to settle for silver. Huston took home the bronze, an improvement after a disappointing seventh-place finish in Tokyo.

«The level of competition was unbelievable,» Eaton said. «I mean, it was arguably the greatest final in skateboarding history, and to be involved in it was really special.»

Added the 29-year-old Huston, who was still in awe of the medal around his neck an hour after competition: «It's sick to look at it. I've got a ton of X Games gold medals before, but none of them look like this or feel like this.»

The 25-year-old Horigome came up empty on his second, third and fourth tricks then stunned the crowd on his final attempt. After he stuck the landing on his nollie 270 to nosebluntside, the electric audience at the packed outdoor park at La Concorde roared louder than it had before.

«When he made that, all I thought was 's---,'» Eaton said. "'S---.' I knew with that trick score, I knew that he was going to win if he landed it."

On their respective fifth chances, Hutson and Eaton each wiped out, making Horigome an Olympic champion again.

Snoop Dogg,