The road to Paris 2024 will begin for park skateboarders at the 2022 World Skateboarding Championships in Sharjah, United Arab Emirates, February 5-12.
The week-long competition to determine two new world champions will also double as an Olympic qualification event where skaters will receive ranking points based on their performance.
The competition will begin with open qualifiers for men and women, where those who finish in the top 32 will advance to the quarter-finals. There skaters who are pre-seeded based on them Olympic World Skating Ranking (OWSR), will join the competition phase.
The quarter-final and semi-final will reduce the number of participants to the final, which will be streamed live on Olympics.com on Sunday, February 12.
From Tokyo 2020 Olympic gold medalist Keegan Palmer to Great Britain Sky brownstar power will not be lacking in presence at the Aljada Skate Park in Sharjah.
Here’s your complete guide to the event, including the schedule and skateboarders to follow.
Park Skateboarding World Championships: Stars to Watch
Men to watch
With all three Tokyo 2020 Olympic medalists on the field in Sharjah, there is a lot of intrigue surrounding the men’s park competition and who will be the best.
Australian gold medalist Keegan Palmer remains the clear favorite for the title after regaining winning form late last year.
The 19-year-old returned to competition after the Olympics at the Summer X Games, finishing fourth. He then quickly moved up to second place at the 2022 Dew Tour, followed by a first place finish at the STU Open in Rio.
The Olympic silver medalist will be on wheels Pedro Barros who will be Brazil’s hope after the news that the 2022 X Games will finish second Louis Francis will miss the competition due to injury. But Barros won’t be the only Brazilian to look out for. Fourteen-year-old world record holder Gui Chury will be in the mix after deciding to go from vertical to parking for the duration of the competition.
The United States will have a lot of skin in the game when it comes to medals.
Among their hopes is Tokyo 2020 street bronze medalist Jagger Eatonwho is once again trying to qualify for both park and street for Paris 2024. He will face strong competition from his compatriots Gavin Bottger, Liam Rate and Tate Carewwho all have won the park’s biggest competitions under their belt.
Other stars on the radar are Japan’s double threat Ayumu Hirano and Australia Kieran Woolley.
Hirano, 24, will land in the United Arab Emirates fresh from sixth place 2023 X Games Aspen in snowboard half-pipe while Woolley will be looking to back a breakthrough in 2022.
Women to watch
Since winning medals at Tokyo 2020, Yosozumi Sakura, Hiraki cocoon and Sky Brown have remained the dominant forces in the park’s women’s competition scene.
Brown in particular recovered, winning consecutive titles at last year’s majors, including the Summer X Games, Dew Tour and the STU Open in Rio.
Stopping the trio from re-entering the podium is a task the rest of the riders will line up to drop into Aljada for, but there’s plenty of talent around to do it.
National champion and Tokyo 2020 finalist Bryce Wettstein and third place at the STU Rio Open minna Stess will be among those from Team USA hoping to make an attempt while Brazil will hope to see their skateboarding Olympic finalists Dora Varella and Yndiara Viper may have an impact.
The full schedule of the 2023 World Skateboarding Championships
The schedule is subject to update, all times are in Gulf Standard Time (UTC +4).
Sunday February 5
- Open training sessions, women and men – 09:00 – 20:35
Monday February 6
- Open training sessions, women and men – 09:00 – 20:35
Tuesday February 7
Open training sessions, women and men – 09:00 – 20:35
Training of pre-seeded skaters – 20:40-22:15
Wednesday February 8
Thursday 9 February
Friday 10 February
Saturday February 11
Sunday February 12
Women’s Finals – 5:10 PM – 5:55 PM
Men’s finals – 18:25 – 19:10
Awards ceremony – 19:40 – 20:10
What is the seeding structure and who are the top five pre-seeded skateboarders in the park?
The top five OWSR riders as of December 15, 2022 will skip open qualifiers and be seeded directly to the quarter-finals.
Skaters from places 6 to 30 will be seeded for open qualifiers.
Women
Misugu Okamoto (Japan)*
Yosozumi Sakura (Japanese)
Blue Brown (GBR)
Poppy Starr Olsen (AUS)
Lizzie Armanto (FIN)*
Hiraki Kokona (JPN)
*No competition
Men
Heiman Reynolds (USA)
Cory Juneau (US)
Louis Francisco (BRA)*
Pedro Barros (BRA)
Zion Wright (USA)*
Keegan Palmer (AUS)
*No competition
World Park Skate Championship 2023: Competition Scoring and Seeds
- Open Qualifier: Two 45-second runs – best run counts
The top 32 athletes by gender will advance to the quarter-finals
- Quarter final – two runs of 45 seconds each – the best run counts
The top 16 players, broken down by gender, will advance to the semi-finals
- Semi-final – three runs of 45 seconds each – the best run counts
The top eight players, broken down by gender, will advance to the finals
- Final – three runs of 45 seconds each – the best run counts
How to watch the 2023 Park Skateboarding World Championships live
Coverage of the World Park Skateboarding Championships will begin with the semi-finals on Saturday, February 11 and will be broadcast live on the Olympic Channel via Olympics.com without any geographic restrictions.
At Olympics.com you can find all the latest information about your favorite skateboarders, including news, interviews and updates from Sharjah.
