The World Skateboarding Tour has returned to the UAE for a final double-header of both Park and Street.

In each, the top 44 according to OWSR rankings- to which all WST stops can contribute- go forward to the Olympic Qualifier Series which funnels into the Paris Olympic Games this summer. With Park wrapped in no small drama last week, Street now takes centre-stage here in Dubai Marina. While it may be a cliche to say that it is all to play for, we have seen upset after blow-up after shocker on the Tour so far- and the tempo of those storylines seems to be reaching a crescendo right now, here on the waterfront of the Gulf.

Already we have seen blood on the dancefloor with some big names not making it out of the qualification phase: perennial Brazilian finalist Kelvin Hoefler, American pro’s Jamie Foy, Chris Joslin, Braden Hoban and Peruvian Olympian Angelo Caro will all be watching proceedings from the stands from hereon in.

Very much in charge of proceedings in the Men’s division is the well-liked and charming Frenchman Vincent Milou, who has progressed in pole position both into these quarterfinals and indeed beyond them into the semis with two flawless runs. He has noticeably improved both in crispness of technique and consistency over the course of the WST and stands on the cusp of something great here today. At the other end of the name-recognition spectrum going forward are Peru’s Deivid Tuesta, part of the Youth Athlete Development programme which identifies talents bigger than their domestic environment, and Japanese WST newcomer Sena Watanabe who has progressed comfortably thus far and still seems to have plenty in the tank for what comes next.

Women’s quarterfinals gave an early indication of what seems likely to be a nail-biting shoot-out between Brazilian pacesetter Rayssa Leal and Australian prodigy Chloe Covell in the making, but the real ‘tale of the tape’ at this juncture in proceedings is that fully 9 of the last 16 contestants are Japanese.

If you thought that the 2020 Tokyo Olympics or indeed the 2023 Tokyo World Championships were the be-all and end-all of the Japanese blow-up, watch this space!