That’s a Wrap!
We have had 3 days of non-stop action here in Saudi Arabia. The location was amazing and the crowds were delighted to see the 72 International Riders wow them with their insane skills.
AMATEUR FINALS - GOLDEN TICKET
As announced at the beginning of the event, the nice surprise of this Battle of the Champions is the Golden Ticket to go to FISE Montpellier 2019 for amateur winners. In Parkour, Anas Quadah has already made sure he will join us in May. In today's finals it’s Ahmed Haji in Skateboard Street, Paris Mandura in Roller Freestyle, Cesar Espinosa Huerta in BMX Flat and Alayyaf Alameer Albaz in BMX Freestyle Park who won their invitation to the festival in France.
SKATEBOARD STREET PRO FINAL
Manny Santiago is our Champion!
With some of the Worlds best skateboard riders competing, it was sure to be an insane contest, and we were treated to one hell of a show. Manny Santiago from the USA is world renowned, and it was surprising to see him finish 8th in qualifying yesterday. Today he was back to his usual self, and he came out firing. He landed some really difficult tricks in his first run, including an Impossible lip slide, kick flip crooks and a Big heel boardslide. He scored a big 85.70 points and he was able to hold on to the top spot throughout the Final. In second place was current FISE World Series Champion Richard Tury from Slovakia. He had a clean first run which included a nice Heelflip Noseslide and scored 84.93 points to take second place. In 3rd it was another American Rider, Ke'Chaud Johnson, who really has rode great throughout this contest. He skated with style, landing a perfect frontside nosegrind and a sick feeble grind with a pop out. A fantastic Showcase of skateboarding for the Saudi Arabian People.
BMX FLATLAND PRO FINAL
Alex Jumelin is our BMX Flatland Champion!
Alex was our first place qualifier yesterday and he was unstoppable today! It was a pristine performance from the French rider who was in complete control. We saw him using his signature move of rolling back into a boomerang to link really difficult tricks, which ensured he created long complex combos. He scored a well deserved 88.33 points to walk away with the win. Jean William Prevost took second place despite riding with an injury and not having his best day. He has such a fast, aggressive style and we saw some of his characteristic back wheel control. He pulled a clean Rolling Undertaker and the difficulty level of some of his combos was outrageous. He scored 85.66 pts to take 2nd place. Dez Maarsen was the first rider to take to the stage and he kicked things off in style. He started by spinning on the front wheel, cleanly completing a spinning hitchhiker on the front wheel and his run included some tricks he originated. He got 84.00 pts which was good enough for 3rd place. A masterclass in flatland from the Top 3 riders!
ROLLER FREESTYLE FINAL
Joe Atkinson is our Roller Freestyle Champion!
This guys is unstoppable at the moment. He is winning every competition he enters and today was no different. The man from Yorkshire was riding on another level. He flew around the whole course on his first run packing in the tricks to score 85.66 pts and take home the top Prize. CJ Wellsmore from Australia was a man on a mission today. He landed so many crowd pleasing tricks including a Huge 720 and finished his run with a big back flip. A big score of 82.33 pts meant he got 2nd place. The flying Dutchman Jelle Briggeman got 3rd place. His run was full of power, amplitude and energy.
WAKEBOARD PRO FINAL
The weather conditions had greatly improved since yesterday. The wind decrease allowed riders to take kickers with much more amplitude, as well as dropping much more technical tricks on the rails. Yesterday’s qualification was smashed by the young riders, but today it was experience that paid off. The scores of Victor Salmon and Jules Charraud were really tight, however the Red Bull rider flawless style to made the difference. First in qualification yesterday, the youngster Maxime Roux managed to get an honorable third place.
BMX FREESTYLE PARK PRO FINAL
Brandon Loupos is our BMX Park Champion!
It was an incredible final here in Saudi Arabia and the level of riding from the BMX Park riders was off the charts. Yesterday's top place qualifier Loupos was determined to hang on to that top spot and no one could stand in his way. His first run was crazy as he landed a huge double flip, a trick no one else had even attempted. That alongside a Big Cashroll, a Triple Tailwhip and a crazy 900 in the middle of his run, meant he scored a HUGE 95pts and went into first place. He used his second run as a victory lap and delighted everyone when he pulled off a 1080 over the box Jump which was INSANE. In second place it was fellow Australian Logan Martin. He also went for it in the final and his two runs were stacked full of tricks. He managed to get so much air on his combos and his 720 barspin catch barspin was breathtaking. He scored a well deserved 93.33pts. In third place with a score of 90.33 pts we had American rider Nick Bruce. He busted out trick after trick across his 2 runs landing some insane combos such as a 360 double downside tailwhip. A truly immense display of skill from the BMX Park Riders!
