Let’s go out on a limb, here, and say that- as far as locations for skateboarding contests go, both in a meta sense and in terms of specific geography- both Rome, and the Colle Oppio park within it where our jam is going down, either win that category or share it with a very few others across the globe throughout the history of skateboarding culture.

Two new developments from last year that we will touch on really quickly which add to the atmosphere is the introduction of tiered seating for a stadium feel, and the creation of an incredible awning-covered terrace beside the practice plaza complete with sofas, DJ and a bar overlooking the Colosseum in a scene that Instagram influencers would spill their goodie-bags to get a shot from, and all this is laid on for the skaters for free. Magical is a grand word but this feels like something approaching it.

Tomorrow is when qualification begins, from which the top 27 of both male and female entrants will join the top 5 pre-seeded skaters in their division based upon current OWSR rankings. Friday will see those 32 quarter-finalists cut to 16 for Saturday’s semi-finals at which point the format moves from best 45-second run of 2 to best run plus 2 best tricks of 5.

As a Road To Paris Olympic qualification event you can imagine the skaters are going all-in already, so be sure to follow us on Instagram for daily updates and join us at the weekend on both World Skate TV and the Olympic Channel’s Youtube to see another all-time skateboarding showdown from the eternal city of Rome!