World Skate are stoked to announce a brand new Vert event format for all WSVR ramp contests beginning with World Skate Games Argentina next month.

As one of skateboarding's oldest disciplines, Vert has helped shape skateboarding in the public imagination. However, traditional competition formats in Vert have hitherto never managed to fuse the two parameters of progress in Vert skating over the last forty years- the total master of the ramp demonstrated by run consistency, and the insane cutting edge of high-stakes trickery- into a single result.

Until now: starting with our kickoff Vert contest at World Skate Games in Buenos Aires on 26- 31 October 2022 ( *31st being a spare day for weather contingencies), WSVR Vert events will apply a new finals format which combines run scores with a Best Trick session from which highest scores will contribute to a total overall result demonstrating who is at the absolute cutting edge of the activity today.

The format is the collective brainchild of the World Skate Vert Working Group led by Renton Millar in liaison with Jimmy Wilkins, Lincoln Ueda, Rony Gomes and other top professionals from today’s Vert skating scene in order to establish a format that would bring the hype back to Vert contests and reward innovation in all aspects of the craft.

From an audience perspective, it is the best of both worlds: quarter-finals and semi-finals will be judged on the universally-acknowledged timed-run format, while the finals will see the introduction of a composite score combining both best run and best trick scores which has proven so entertaining and climactic in the street events.

We sat down with Renton Millar who chairs the Vert Working Group to find out more about how the format will work and who was involved in developing the revolutionary contest concept:

Hi, Renton- so what does the Vert Working Group do, exactly?

The Vert Working Group is World Skate’s working group for developing Vert skateboarding. All of the group are vert skaters. We worked on the concepts and presentation of the World Championships that would have occurred during Covid, and now we have been working on the 2022 World Championships in Buenos Aires. We meet as a group to develop the rules and formats and presentation of Vert skateboarding in events run by World Skate. Things like competition rules and ramp dimensions, to competition formats and presentation… it puts Vert skaters at the core of the decision-making in the development of Vert skating. 

Ultimately, we would like to see vert get regular competitions, and get in the Olympics… it deserves that. 

Who sits on it? 

The Core group is myself, Lincoln Ueda, Rony Gomes and Jimmy Wilkins. We also reach out to and tapped the brains of others such as Edi Damestoy and Elliot Sloan. All of which is facilitated by Martin Karas. 

What was the process that led to the conception of this new hybrid format? 

I think that for whatever reason the same- or very similar- format has been used in Vert skateboarding for about forty years- timed runs, best run counts. It has been a successful format, but it has also possibly brought some stagnation to Vert skating. The approach and the strategies from the skaters, as well as the presentation side has largely been unchanged since the Eighties. 

We’ve learnt that many of the skaters are keen for a change. Personally, I saw the introduction of the 3/5/3 format to street, and always really thought it would be a great addition to Vert. However, it was never presented to Vert skaters to try. When I got the opportunity to propose new ideas for Vert, I immediately thought of this. When I floated the idea to the Vert Working Group and other skaters, they all supported it. 

Who was consulted for input? 

Obviously the Vert Working Group, as well as any skaters I thought may be in a position to skate a competition like this. The process of figuring out new possible formats has gone on for about three years. We were in the planning stages for I think the 2020, or 2021 World Championships, and that didn’t happen. Then we began working on the details of the upcoming event in Argentina. With World Skate being an International Governing body, there is a process of governance and consultation with most things. This was no different. I was stoked to be able to hear the opinions of Lincoln, Jimmy, Rony, Elliot, Edi and the others we spoke to. These guys are basically the best Vert skaters at the moment, which means they are in the group of the best Vert skaters that have ever lived, pretty much. The skaters really deserve a spot for proper input, and for Vert skating, the Vert Working Group is that place. 

How will it be scored, exactly? 

The easiest way to explain it is its basically very similar to the way current street skating is judged. The qualifying and semi’s are timed runs, best run counts, and the finals are 3/5/3. Three runs, best run counts, plus 5 attempts at best trick, with best two counting (Three Runs, Five Best Tricks, Best Three scores count (with one run score mandatory)). Three scores are combined for an overall score. It's fairly different to past vert formats, in that there are three scores counting. I think that is great, because it means that spectators can follow the progress of the event, seeing the rankings change, and building suspense with skaters having to achieve certain scores to reach certain rankings. It also means that more progressive tricks can be showcased in the Best Trick section, and that also brings in a wider variety of strategy. I think it is also new for Vert to have a part of the competition where you have 5 attempts at tricks and 2 tricks are counted. It gives you a window to show really hard tricks, but you also have to be consistent. I know some people would probably ask why not just have one best trick? The answer is because Best Tricks are so subjective. Like, how can you compare a kickflip frontside boardslide and a 900? By having two best tricks in the Best Trick section, it takes away some of the subjectivity. The other cool thing is it brings another skill to the table: not just to be able to do runs, but to be able to do stand-out progressive tricks. Rewarding skaters for progressing is so important, and this format brings that element. We are also working to keep the scores fairly balanced. Like if a high-scoring run is an 84, then two tricks that added up to 84 should be at a level proportional to the score value of the run.

Would it be possible for someone to win just by sticking a couple of big Best Tricks? 

The system, and scoring is geared to avoid that, but obviously rankings are dependent on not just the skater’s score, but how the other skaters skate. One run will always count to a skater’s combined score, so if someone bails on all three of their runs on the first wall, it would be extremely unlikely they would win unless the rest of the field did not perform very well in one or all of the parts of the phase. On the other hand, if a skater was to not complete a run fully, but was able to make two mind-melting, state-of-the-art progressive NBDs, it would be a possibility for them to claw back a possible win. I think that’s the beauty of such a system: it is a game. One where you can have highs and lows, and have troubles but be able to redeem yourself. It’s great for the skaters and their strategies, as well as the live spectators and those watching on TV. You don’t need to know the technical sides of the tricks to follow it. All you need to know is one guy needs certain points to go up, and that really brings so much to watching it as a sport. I think it's done huge things for street skating- and I think it can for Vert, also. 

Like Renton, World Skate believe this format and the skateboarders’ direct input into the nature of their own event will usher in a new era in Vertical skateboarding culture.

We hope you can share in that excitement!

Download the new vert rules here!