Done the Hard Way

Matt Berger grew up in Kamloops, British Columbia — a place where winter bites and work is currency. Here, you proved you cared by showing up, day after day, no shortcuts. Berger learned that rhythm before he ever dreamed of Olympic qualifiers or global skate videos. I think that those surroundings and the work ethic of people in my home city inspired me to where I wanted to work as hard as they did at their jobs, but toward skateboarding,” Berger says.

Skateboarding professionally was never a guarantee, but Berger felt it in his bones. His dad, an electrician, came home from work, his hands raw from the cold, and exhaustion etched into his posture. That image stayed with Berger. If he wanted a future on his board, he’d have to grind for it.

When Everything Can Break

Turning pro came early, but it didn’t make Berger bulletproof. A knee injury nearly erased everything. The first surgery failed. The second was a gamble. “It sucked waking up every day wondering if everything you’ve worked your whole life for, and you love the most, is going to be gone or not,” he says. “It was a lot to mentally manage, but it also brought me back to my core of why I love to skate and will always go back to skateboarding and claw my way back, no matter what happens.”

It was a four-year stretch that rewired him. His training sharpened, and the why behind every session mattered more. When he finally stepped back on his board, even the rough days felt like progress. The comeback wasn’t cinematic. It was slow, stubborn, and earned.

By the time Berger reached the Tokyo Olympics, he carried both the experience and the scars to prove his place on the team. The first run unraveled, with equipment issues, COVID-19 rules, and no easy fixes, but he adapted.

Paris went more smoothly. He didn’t medal, but he left with a sharper sense of purpose. “I gauged it on how I would feel after Paris, because it’s a lot of hard work and dedication and time away and traveling. With the way Paris went, it was kind of like, ‘Oh, my battery’s full,’” Berger explains, adding, “I definitely want to go for a third Olympics.”

He’s back in the cycle, training for his first qualifier in Brazil, locked into a routine that never softens. Five days a week start with long bike rides, then the gym. Some days it’s street filming, other days it’s warehouse sessions in Southern California. The rhythm is relentless, never easy.

He keeps himself uncomfortable by design. As a kid, Berger set a rule: do something on his board every day that scares you. That edge still drives him.

People outside of skateboarding rarely see what the job entails. Berger laughs at the idea of needing a side gig. Skateboarding lives in the space between being overlooked and being an obsession, and he’s fine with that.

For Berger, video parts matter more than contests. That’s where a skater’s identity lives. A video part is a gallery show, proof of what you can do — not just a single trick but the whole body of work.

What You Carry Forward

Skateboarding splits in every direction now. Rebellion in the streets, order in the contests. Berger welcomes it all. The sport’s bigger, but for him, it’s still about the effort and intention you bring.

That grounding shows up in his tattoos, especially the family crest inked by reputed tattoo artist Luke Wessman during Monster Energy’s “SELF MADE” series: a lion and crown, drawn from Berger’s British heraldry and the British Columbia coat of arms.

Monster Energy has backed Berger since the eleventh grade. Through injuries and setbacks, their support has remained steady, like family. “I remember when I was faced with my first knee surgery, and I was having a tough time getting through it and trying to come back. I was wondering if they’re going to cut my contract over it.” Berger says, but Monster stood by him. “Time and time again over the years, that support has been unparalleled.”

For Berger, being self-made isn’t a slogan. It’s Kamloops, cold mornings, failed surgeries, long bike rides, quiet effort, and progress when no one’s looking. He is still chasing new tricks and grinding for qualifiers. He’s always in forward motion, but he keeps the origin story close, never forgetting where he started.

Watch the full story behind Matt Berger’s SELF MADE journey here.