Finals day in Ostia is quite the thing: the fanzone is hosting 3-on-3 basketball, surfskate taster sessions, skate lessons on a rad-looking 2 foot mini ramp, skateshop, music, homemade pasta and porchetta sandwich guys firing out the Aperol spritz to all and sundry: all over, a groovy scene. The stands were packed again, as they were last year and seem likely to be every time the World Skateboarding Tour rolls into town in the future.

All photos: Kenji Haruta

Now: down to business. Women’s finals were up first with DJ Redbeard setting an early tone with power chords that never let up throughout. England’s Lilly Strachan and France’s Nana Taboulet both barged their way into these finals against a field of bigger skateboarding nations and while nobody storms to the top of the leaderboard in their first finals- and I literally can’t think of a single example of that happening on the WST- the fact that they made it that far has kicked through a mental doorway for both and that in itself is the victory for them to take away.

Bunched together in the finals standings as indeed they were throughout the qualifying stages were the Japanese trio of Asahi Kaihara, Mizuho Hasegawa and Mei Sugawara who were separated by 3.5 points in total and which is probably an accurate reflection of how little difference in size of talent they have: each put down a full run (Mei, two) so there should be no sense of unfulfilled destiny there.

The top three probably could have been predicted in one form or another right from first practice: Naia Laso looks like a different skateboarder in terms of consistency and poise from the nervous teenager of a year ago. She looked unsettled after missing a relatively straightforward final trick (for her) on her first run but her final run for 90-plus and third seemed to wash that all away. Fantastic.

The top two, however, looked like the top two all the way through this week. Hinano Kusaki and Raicca Ventura just go bigger than everyone else. Raicca stormed out of the blocks with two runs like someone driving a stolen car. Considering she could barely put weight on her knee after a slam yesterday, this performance was nothing short of heroic. After her second run, somewhere in the back of her mind she knew she had done it and she went to her parents with the good kind of tears flowing.

But then she fluffed her last run and Hinano Kusaki- who fluffed her first but found her groove again quickly with the sort of composure only happy people can- stole her own car and blasted everything in front of her to run Raicca to within less than two and half points of the title. Boy, it was exciting.

As were the boys: we should stop proceedings here to recognise Kalani Konig. Two-time Brazilian STU Park title holder but less well known outside his home nation and ninth among Brazilians in the WSR rankings, he qualified in first courtesy of a Hail Mary run that opened- opened, not ended- with an alley-oop kickflip indy over a 12-foot loveseat. Then in warm ups- not practice, warm-ups- he slammed hard enough to not be expected to return. Return he did, but couldn’t get that all-or-nothing opener to return with him. That said, we really hope to see him return because he is the inheritor of Pedro Barros’ watch-through-your-fingers, on-edge danger style that makes skateboarding the most exciting thing in the world. Desperately unlucky, but freakishly talented- we want to see more.

Above him came Rome’s own Alessandro Mazzara, who as with last year brought a crowd response that sounded like The Rapture had finally arrived. It wasn’t to be for him at this time of asking- but, as we will see further up the leaderboard and forevermore in skating at this level, there is no point in talking about consistency when everything is pushed to the edge of possibility.

At that level, everything is a roll of the dice- wheelbite here, an ankle tweak there- so there is nothing to be learned other than that tomorrow is a new day. He definitely looked sharper than ever and to have another European contender at this level is exciting in itself. In sixth came Sweden’s Hampus Winberg who in some ways was the most impressive overall this week. He found the difficult parts easy and the easier parts difficult and finding a level between those two is his challenge- but you’d have to be blind not to say he’s on the floor above next-level. We should recognise greatness when it moves among us- and, he has time on his side.

Above him came the sublimely wonderful Basque 13-year-old Egoitz Bijueska, who sailed through every stage up to the finals with ease and then suddenly, understandably, looked nervous. Despite that, he managed to stick his last run including a bluntslide pop-in over the low hip which he’d made a dozen times in practice but tangled him up on his first two runs. A word on that nondescript part of the park: it was the same spot that both Naia Laso and Viktor Solmunde stepped off their final, extra-point liptricks. Maybe we need to get it exorcised. Where were we? Ah yes: Egoitz Bijueska- 13 years old and already unbelievable. If he doesn’t have the competition worried then they aren’t paying attention.

Just beating that splendid chap came Luigi Cini, who made his first run exquisitely but then uncharacteristically was unable to add to it. A consummate strategist with variations to spare, adding the kickflip stalefish to late varial over the volcano he planned would have put him on the podium for sure, but as with Ale Mazzara it wasn’t to be- for reasons we can all only shrug our shoulders at. Call it luck or what you will.

In third came the Dane who is knocking on the door, Viktor Solmunde. I’ll tell you what: he is magnificent. If he doesn’t win a WST stop in 2025 I will eat something unpleasant. Since Dubai it has been in the mail, and sooner or later it will come. Probably sooner. In second came Pedro Barros, about whom not much more can be said. Unorthodox, spontaneous, it is not entirely clear if he even plans his runs in full or just runs on the revs.

He left it-of course he did- until the last run to stick one of his classic mayhem masterpieces, which had him in first until his Brazilian counterpart, the laid-back Bossa-Nova to Pedro’s Sepultura skate style, Augusto Akio grooved into view and walked away with the World Champion title with a brushstrokes performance about a month or so out from becoming an Olympic medallist in the same way. Four out of eight finalists in the men’s category were Brazilian tonight, and each of them brought their own twist on skateboarding to the table. Quite a people they are, are they not?

So: a deserved Brazilian double-whammy at the World Park Skateboarding Championship 2024 taking place as part of the World Skate Games Italia here over the past three weeks. Our thanks go as ever to all the skaters we have hosted, but also all the staff and security who have worked so hard throughout. 

Arrivederci!