Notwithstanding all the excitement and colour of the Olympics just passed- and the fact that the pre-seeded medallists have to wait a few days to get started here in Rome- it is very nice to recommence our World Skateboarding Tour and welcome everyone back; alongside an influx of new faces as well, of course.
It is natural enough that we should see some changes: people inevitably roll ankles, some are understandably still on hiatus from their entire Paris Olympic journey whether happy or sad- and some newcomers have clearly been awaiting their chance to jump in on a new contest cycle.
One constant feature of the WST which is attractive at any stage in the game is the shared $250,000 prize purse. Not only is that a spicy meatball in this day and age, but isn’t it nice to see a contest series which is upfront about what’s on the table?
Staying with the numbers for a second: we have 192 entrants from 48 nations (124 men and 68 women), four years out from the next Olympic Games- which rather gives the lie to the suggestion that our community only had that event in mind!
The World Skate Rankings continue to be the sole international measurement by which skateboarders’ progress is quantified by their National Federations- and with World Championships carrying more points than Pro Tour events, the incentive to deliver big here in Rome is huge- even leaving aside that quarter-of-a-million dollars lying on the table.
Among the heavy-hitting new faces joining the WST here in Rome is the fantastic Tyson Bowerbank, who has been super-impressive in practice so far.
One last statistic for you here: 360 degrees.
That’s how far Tyson span out of that backside smithgrind in the photograph above. Whipped it round, he did.
If that’s what is going down in practice, then the WST Street World Championship- being held here in Rome as part of the huge World Skate Games Italia 2024- is going to be wild this weekend, best believe.
Join us on Eurovision Sport, World Skate TV or the Olympic Channel to see it go down live!
A unique event: World championships of 12 sports on skating wheels will put on an incredible show in 9 italian cities from 6th to 22nd September, bringing the extraordinary world of wheels and urban sports in the heart of each city.It’s a real youth festival where 160 world titles will be awarded in an extraordinary mix of competitions, music, fun and breathtaking sports.
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