Four days, 230 skaters and 31 countries: the Inline Freestyle World Championships brought speed, precision and technique to the SND complex in Asunción from October 6 to 9 at the World Skate Games ASU26. Chinese Taipei swept the Speed Slalom titles, Veronika Zherelnikova cleared 142 cm for a new world record, and the introduction of separate Junior categories in Freestyle Slides and Free Jump gave the next generation its own world championship stage.
Across seven disciplines and 22 titles, the Championships showcased the full range of Inline Freestyle, from races against the clock to choreographed routines, technical battles and jumps decided by the smallest margins.
October 6: Chinese Taipei sets the pace
Speed Slalom opened the programme with 86 skaters from 17 countries. Morning Time Trials determined the qualifiers for the afternoon’s head-to-head KO rounds, with particularly close fields in the Junior categories and Senior Women.
Chinese Taipei took all four individual titles. Huang Shih-Ting won Junior Women ahead of teammate Pang Shih-Ching and Hong Kong’s Chiu Chloe Sik Ji. In Junior Men, Yang Hao Yu claimed gold, with Italy’s Manuel Moretti and Daniele Salzillo taking silver and bronze.
Huang Miao Man led another Chinese Taipei one-two in Senior Women ahead of Li Yun Fang, while Italy’s Matilde Arosio completed the podium. The Senior Men delivered a clean sweep: Yang Kai Wei took gold ahead of Huang Pin Ruei and Cheng Yu Hsiang.
Chinese Taipei carried that momentum into Team Speed, winning ahead of Italy and Korea to complete a perfect five-title opening day. With nine of the twelve individual Speed Slalom medals, the delegation’s strength extended well beyond the top step.
October 7: Classic crowns its champions
The focus shifted from pure speed to technical difficulty, musical interpretation and control as 98 skaters from 22 countries contested Freestyle Slalom Classic. Morning qualifying rounds determined the remaining places in the afternoon finals, before Freestyle Pair Slalom closed the day.
Sofia Anisimova won Junior Women ahead of Hong Kong’s Li Yuet Yi and Margarita Komarovskaia. Thailand’s Kamin Inswang took the Junior Men’s title, with Roman Shchapov second and Semen Mikhailov third.
Poland’s Justyna Teczar claimed Senior Women’s gold ahead of Chinese Taipei’s Hou An Yu and Fan Tz Yu. Chinese Taipei secured another title in Senior Men through Chou Po-Wei, followed by teammate Chen Chien Ting and Spain’s Pau Bosch Coll.
Ten pairs from seven countries competed in Freestyle Pair Slalom. Roman Shchapov and Margarita Komarovskaia took gold, ahead of Chinese Taipei’s Chen Chien Ting and Hou Chun Yen. Thailand’s Natnanda Pasutanavin and Kamin Inswang earned bronze, giving Inswang his second medal of the day.
October 8: Junior history and a record-breaking jump
Thursday marked a milestone for Inline Freestyle: for the first time at a World Championship, Freestyle Slides and Free Jump featured separate Junior and Senior categories.
The morning’s Slides competition brought together 46 skaters from 16 countries. Uliana Dudina became Junior Women’s champion ahead of Ukraine’s Marusia Pohuliaka and Chinese Taipei’s Liu Chen Yu. Liao Yu De added another gold for Chinese Taipei in Junior Men, with Ukraine’s Mykhailo Teterin taking silver and San Marino’s Tommaso Terenzi bronze.
Anna Kukushkina won Senior Women ahead of Ukraine’s Sofiia Kytaihora and Alena Efimova. Thailand’s Viritpol Vongakrayakorn claimed Senior Men’s gold, followed by Spain’s Enrique Rubio Mesas and Kazakhstan’s Anvar Akylbekov.
The afternoon’s Free Jump competition, featuring 40 skaters from 15 countries, produced one of the defining performances of the Championships. Veronika Zherelnikova cleared 142 cm to win Junior Women’s gold and set a new world record. France’s Emilie Bellanger and Ukraine’s Polina Zelenokhat completed the podium, both clearing 127 cm.
Moldova’s Maxim Caraion delivered another outstanding Junior performance, winning the men’s title at 170 cm. Spain’s Julian Fernandez-Campon Navarro took silver ahead of Ukraine’s Nazar Portianko, with both recording 158 cm.
Italy claimed both Senior Free Jump titles. Francesca Brivio won the women’s competition at 135 cm, ahead of Alena Efimova at 130 cm and France’s Mayrin Burasovitch at 125 cm.
The Senior Men’s podium came down to tie-breaks, with all three medallists clearing 165 cm. Gianmarco Savi took gold for Italy, Benin’s Mouhawya Salifou earned silver, and Senegal’s Ousseynou Diene claimed bronze. Defending champion Dame Fall of Senegal finished fourth, bringing his long reign at the top to an end.
October 9: Battle time
Freestyle Battle Slalom closed the Championships with 98 skaters from 21 countries. Morning qualifiers led into the afternoon’s semi-finals and finals, where three Classic champions returned to the top step.
Sofia Anisimova completed the Junior Women’s Classic-Battle double. The entire podium repeated Wednesday’s result, with Li Yuet Yi taking silver and Margarita Komarovskaia bronze.
Kamin Inswang also secured a second individual title in Junior Men, ahead of Roman Shchapov and Spain’s Adrian Sebastian Gimenez. Combined with his Pair Slalom bronze, the Thai skater finished with three medals.
Justyna Teczar completed the third Classic-Battle double in Senior Women. Spain’s Alexandra Muntean claimed silver, while Hou An Yu added bronze to her Classic silver.
Pavel Matveev won Senior Men ahead of Chinese Taipei’s Chen Chien Ting and Italy’s Lorenzo Demuru. Chen’s result brought his medal total to three silvers across Classic, Battle and Pair Slalom.
Standout performances across the Championships
Chinese Taipei finished with 18 medals: seven gold, seven silver and four bronze, including the complete sweep of Speed Slalom and Team Speed. Russia also collected seven titles and 14 medals, with victories across Classic, Pair Slalom, Slides, Free Jump and Battle.
Thailand earned three gold medals, led by Inswang’s two individual titles and Vongakrayakorn’s Senior Men’s Slides victory. Italy collected seven medals, including both Senior Free Jump golds, while Spain and Ukraine each finished with five.
Alongside Inswang and Chen Chien Ting, Roman Shchapov and Margarita Komarovskaia were three-time medallists. Shchapov combined Pair Slalom gold with Junior Men’s silver in both Classic and Battle; Komarovskaia added two Junior Women’s bronze medals to her Pair Slalom title. Anisimova and Teczar each left Asunción with two individual world titles.
The Championships were overseen by a 15-member international judging team led by Spain’s Head Judge Pablo Christiaens. Judges from Chinese Taipei, Thailand, Korea, Spain, France, Poland, Ukraine, Ecuador, Chile, Italy and Peru brought their expertise to the four-day programme.
The Paraguayan organisers and local teams provided the support needed to bring athletes, officials and the Inline Freestyle community together at the SND complex. Live coverage on World Skate TV shared the competition with viewers around the world.
From Chinese Taipei’s opening-day sweep to Zherelnikova’s record-breaking jump and the final Battle doubles, Asunción delivered four days that celebrated both established champions and the generation ready to follow them.