In 2019 she became a mother for the first time to son Felix, who is now four-years-old and her comeback has served as an inspiration to many other women as well.
“I had a difficult time with an emergency caesarean so recovery took a lot longer than I was expecting and it took a lot to get back on top with my skateboarding and to even believe I could get back to the level I was at before,” Stefani admits.
“In recent months though I’ve had either people who are pregnant or people who have just become mums who are saying that they can now see themselves getting back to what they were before and I feel really proud when I receive messages or videos and it really keeps me going.”
The 34-year-old has returned in a period which has seen her passion elevated to ‘Olympic sport’ status with skateboarding included for the first time at a Games in Tokyo in 2021.
It has helped transform perceptions around the globe and Stefani has certainly noticed a change in attitudes in the UK since Sky Brown followed up her Olympic bronze at those Games with a World Championship title earlier in 2023.
“A couple of days after Sky’s win I had gone to the park to film and usually people expect me not to be that good, but a group of kids had seen me and it was the first time in my life that they assumed I was a professional,” she recalls.
“That was an instant sort of change for me and ever since I’ve just seen so many more girls and women taking up the sport which has been absolutely brilliant!”
PASSIONS, PARIS AND POTENTIAL PROJECTS