They each completed their first run of the elimination round. There are 20 riders total competing and they're split into four groups of five for a jam format, which consists of 15-minute heats in which each athlete can take as many runs on the concrete course as time allows in a 40-second maximum run time.
The first- and second-place finishers from each heat, as well as the higher scoring third-place finisher from each heat, will advance to the finals.
Two groups of five have completed their runs and Banasiewicz (79) and Smith (72) are on top.
Banasiewicz gave the crowd an array of front flips and a no-handed 720 spin.
Smith got some of the highest air of any of the first 10 riders and landed an impressive 360-double tailwhip along with a barspin into tailwhip during one of his runs.
We'll update you after the last two runs and the 10 finalists have been determined.
-- Baxter Holmes
10:44 a.m. PDT: For years, skateboarder Rune Gilfberg was the most decorated X Games performer to never win gold.
He has now won two straight skateboard park gold medals and will seek a third Friday. In a Wednesday X Games press conference, Gilfberg said he expects tougher competition in his try for a three-peat.
"This year the field's a lot different," he said. "There's a lot of more technical street riders, which is going to be really tough for us veterans, not to say old guys."
Gilfberg is one of only three skaters to participate in every X Games and has won 10 X Games medals.
-- DeAntae Prince
10:24 a.m. PDT: One of the reasons X Games organizers wanted to centralize all the events in downtown Los Angeles was to ease the overall commute for fans and to take advantage of the parking, eating and entertainment that the L.A. Live area offers.
As X Games 16 kicks off Thursday morning, the crowd is already starting to pour into the area. Most fans are checking out the vendors that line the street between L.A. Live and Staples Center, but some are staking out good seats at the event deck here, where the BMX Freestyle Park Elimination, the first event of the day, is scheduled to begin at 10:30 a.m.
