Ricardo Chaves, also known as “The Penguin” is considered one of the most respected athletes in the skating scene. He has been skating for 20 years and spent 15 of those as a pro skater. He belonged to the top 10 list of Brazilian street skaters and is now hailed as an icon in his native country. Chaves is currently the marketing manager of Ogio, a bag manufacturing company that sponsors athletes from the golf, BMX, skateboarding, surfing and snowboarding industries.

Some of the highlights of his career include a stint at the 2004 LG Action Sports Championships where he finished in 12th place in the Street preliminaries. It was also in 2004 that he placed fourth at the Latin X Games. He participated in the 2002 Drop Dead Skate Pro competition and finished eighth in the professional Street ranking. In 1999, he competed in the Crail World Cup Skateboarding Contest in Brazil where he placed 10th out of 86 contenders in the finals of the Street category.

Some of Chaves’ company sponsorships include:

• Etnies
• Drop Dead
• Independent Trucks
• Drop Shoes
• Evolke
• Red Beach
• FirstPixel.com

Chaves was recently involved in a book project, the Nutricao Esportiva. He collaborated with the authors of the book on a chapter that was devoted to skateboarder’s nutrition and dietary requirements.

Ricardo Chaves is 31 years old and hails from Sao Paolo. He has a degree in Advertising and Marketing. He currently lives in Florianopolis because he enjoys the quality of life that the city affords its athletes.