(ATR) The official Olympic qualification process for skateboarding’s debut at Tokyo 2020 begins with the season opener of the 2019 World Skate/SLS World Tour in London.
The best street skaters will be competing at Copper Box Arena on May 26-27. They will be joined by unranked national team skaters (three men and three women per country) under the newly introduced Global Open Qualifier. The new system will give more skaters the opportunity to compete for the prestige of an SLS title and premium points in the World Skate Olympic Rankings.
These new rankings award points are based on results at the annual World Championships, all World Tour stops, 5-Star events, Continental Championships and National Championships. But it’s the performances at the World Tour events, where points awarded are significantly higher than any other event except the World Championship, that are critically important for skaters who want to land one of the 20 spots in the Olympic field for men and women.
National Governing Bodies from every continent are expected to send teams to compete in London and have until May 5 to register.
Among the SLS Pros slated to compete in London are Nyjah Huston of the USA, the defending men’s world champion, and Aori Nishimura of Japan, the reigning women’s world champ.
Action Sports Series Debuts in Madrid
Skateboarding and BMX Freestyle Park, two disciplines making debuts in the Tokyo 2020 Olympic program, will be featured in a new series debuting in Madrid on May 3-5.
The Spanish capital will host the first stop of the FISE European Series, designed to bring action sports to cities around Europe.
The skateboard competitions will also be part of the Spanish National Tour.
Roller freestyle and scooter will also included in the selection of sports for the event, which FISE says will be free to attend.
Chateauroux, France will host the next stop on the FISE European Series tour from July 19-21.
St. Louis to Host 2020 USA Gymnastics Olympic Team Trials
The men’s and women’s gymnastics teams representing the United States at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics will be determined in St. Louis.
USA Gymnastics and the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) announced on Tuesday that the host city for the 1904 Olympics has been awarded the 2020 U.S. Olympic Team Trials for Gymnastics.
The trials will be held from June 25-28 at Enterprise Center, the home of the National Hockey League’s St. Louis Blues.
St. Louis hosted the men’s Olympic Team Trials in 2016 but has never been awarded the trials for both genders.
"Bringing the men’s and women’s trials to St. Louis adds another page to the city’s Olympic history book," Li Li Leung, president and CEO of USA Gymnastics, said in a statement. "We look forward to working with the USOC, St. Louis Sports Commission and the Enterprise Center team in planning and hosting a trials that provides the perfect setting for the last stage of the USA’s top gymnasts’ journey to Tokyo and creates lasting memories for athletes and fans alike."
The 2020 USA Gymnastics National Congress and Trade Show will be staged at the America’s Center Convention Complex in conjunction with the trials.
Rowing Venues to be Determined
The World Rowing Federation (FISA) says 21 member federations submitted preliminary bids to host FISA-owned events from 2021 to 2026.
There are 36 events open to bidding during that time frame, highlighted by the 2023, 2025 and 2026 World Rowing Championships.
Under a new bidding process launched at the end of 2017, the deadline for preliminary bids was April 15. The 21 member federations submitted bids from 31 rowing venues. The German Rowing Federation put forward five venues for consideration while the French Rowing Federation presented three.
Bidders have until June 30 to finalize all details and present final bids including financial guarantees.
FISA will then undertake a complete review of all bid documentation to ensure that all standards have been met.
The FISA Congress will decide the winning bids for all world championship events when it meets on Sept. 2. The World Rowing Cup events and the World Rowing Masters Regattas hosts will be determined by the FISA Council and announced at the same FISA Congress.
The European Championship events will be assigned by the European Rowing Extraordinary General Assembly later this year.
Written by Gerard Farek
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