Editing Roark

| image=[[image:Roark.jpg|150px]]

| hair=Cordovan

| eyes=Cordovan

| voiced by=Alejandro Saab (2019)

| debut=''[[Pokémon: Diamond and Pearl Versions|Pokémon: Diamond/Pearl Versions]]''

'''Roark''' is the first of the eight gym leaders of the [[Sinnoh]] region who appears as an opponent ''[[Pokémon: Diamond and Pearl Versions|Pokémon: Diamond, Pearl]]'' and ''[[Pokémon: Platinum Version|Platinum Versions]]'', as well as the remakes ''[[Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl|Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl]]''. He specializes in Rock-type Pokémon.

Being the son of Steel-type gym leader [[Byron]], Roark followed in his father's footsteps by aspiring to become another gym leader. He trained hard and liked to measure the toughness of his Pokémon in battle. His father still looked down at him as a child and originally offered a Gym Leader position to [[Riley]] instead of him. Riley declined in order to give Roark his chance, and so Roark became the gym leader of the Oreburgh City Gym. He also acted as the safety supervisor of the Oreburgh Mines. Despite his youth, he was able to safely maintain the mine while also allowing trainers to use the area to practice with their Pokémon.

In the fourth generation games, Roark was first encountered within the Oreburgh Mines, where he demonstrated the Rock Smash move and then returned to his gym after meeting [[Lucas (Pokemon)|Lucas]]/[[Dawn]]. After being defeated by them, Roark was ashamed to lose to a badgeless trainer, but he admitted that the victor was strong while he was weak. He surrendered the Coal Badge along with TM 76: Stealth Rock and left Lucas/Dawn with the warning that the other seven gym leaders were tougher than him. He was also defeated by [[Barry]] beforehand.

When the player first used the Explorer Kit, Roark appeared nearby to welcome them to the Underground. In ''Platinum'', he was among the trainers who could be randomly battled at the Battleground, where he used a a stronger line-up of Pokémon. Additionally, Roark could visit the player's villa on random days and commented about how fossils could make good decorations. He would also muse about the Underground and wondered if it could extend to [[Kanto]] and [[Johto]].

 

 

Roark later appeared in ''[[Pokémon: Black and White Versions 2|Black and White 2]]'' as one of the competitors in the Pokémon World Tournament held at [[Unova]]. He took part in the Sinnoh Leaders, World Leaders and Type Expert Tournaments.

 

*He has appeared in a total of six episodes of the ''Pokémon'' anime's ''Diamond'' and ''Pearl'' series. In his initial appearances, he was bested by Paul and initially defeated [[Red#Other Media|Ash Ketchum]], until Ash won their rematch. He reappeared when the group arrives at Canalave City, in an episode dealing with his father issues. He acted as a referee during the battle with Byron, who was shown to have more affection for his son than he lets on.

*In the ''Pokémon Evolutions'' anime series, he made an appearance in the fifth episode, in which Barry's gym battle against him was among the scenes from Barry's journey that were depicted.

*His English name could be considered a combination of "rock" and "ore", and it is also possible that he is named after Howard Roark, a character from the Ayn Rand book ''The Fountainhead'', who is also a redheaded man that spent a fraction of his career mining and the rest as an architect. His Japanese name is Hyouta, which is derived from the Japanese word for the calabash gourd, which matches his father being named after a wax gourd.