Just last week, the 20th edition of the FISE happened. In blading, twenty sounds like an awful lot. And this year again, lots of blading happened. Lots of partying happened, too. Sleep? Well, not so much… If there is one thing you can take for granted, it is that year after year, the event will leave you exhausted. Bruised and battered, you will end up missing your own bed and craving a little bit of comfort. And it is a long way back home…
Words: Freddy White
Photography: Dominik Wagner
So let’s get this out of the way:
The FISE is the most important event in blading. Not the most “core”, not the most intimate, but the most important indeed. FISE is where you get world famous athletes and TV personalities giving props to underground rollerbladers. Where Joe Atkinson gets interviewed by Transworld Sports. An event whose own print magazine heavily features blading, bladers, and their own bit of cultural influence, all 10.000 copies distributed for free to visitors, all around the festival site.
That’s for the outside world.
But what’s even more important is the connection the FISE builds within the scene itself. The spine ramp contest held on Saturday night is not only an incredible show for the audience, but also an intense session for all the riders on the spot. The slope style event is an occasion to share talks and drinks on the stair sets, just as much as an actual world class competition. The whole week is about bringing bladers together, while bringing exposure to the sport itself.
And that all makes for a great week!
The package one exhausted blader brings back home usually includes a nice sun tan, blood stains on their clothes, a serious headache, a bunch of smelly socks and quite possibly one STD or the other… Along with a lot of memories and some new friends, too! Fortunately for you, dear reader, pro blader and special reporter Dominik Wagner also brought back this great gallery of photographs to help share the experience: here is our account on this year’s FISE World Montpellier!
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