DC's King Of Vancouver

The top finishers from the DC Nationals City Qualifiers all over Canada hit the famous Vancouver Skate Plaza in the heart of the city this past weekend for DC's King Of Vancouver, the final stage for this summer’s series.


DC’s King Of Series is a global grassroots skateboarding contest. It travels to local street skate spots in cities across the globe, welcoming the city’s best unsponsored skateboarders to compete in a jam format contest. This weekend Vancouver also welcomed members of the Global DC skate team including Colin McKay, Josh Kalis, Lindsey Robertson, Marquise Henry and Matt Miller.


The choice to have a King of contest in Vancouver was obvious—Vancouver has always been one of Canada’s best skate cities. The streets of Vancouver have spawned many pros including DC riders Colin McKay and Ryan Smith, with Vancouver's wooden indoor play lands (like the Skate Ranch) bringing up other future pros like Moses Itkonen, Sluggo, and Rick Howard. The city’s skate terrain is unique and versatile. On any day, you can skate the streets of downtown, the plaza in the heart of the city or hit up one of the many parks.


DC's Canadian Team Manager Trevn Sharp did an incredible job of heading up the DC Nationals Tour, culminating in the big show at KOV this past weekend. Reflecting on the summer's events, Trevn said, "We saw some amazing skating go down and realized that kids are getting better and better every year. This year we saw a lot of young guns coming out and ripping hard to secure a spot at the finals, proving that anything is possible when your knees are still fresh. Because every city is different, as is every skater, so were each of the city qualifiers. With different elements associated with each province, each skater had their own unique bag of tricks that they brought to the table.The line up for the King Of Van is a mix of raw street skaters, buttery smooth control freaks, big gap assassins and young 'ins who seem to think that nothing is impossible. Fifty skaters will meet up in Vancouver and each has a shot at becoming the king."


In the end, it was 16 year old JS Lapierre from Notre Dame, QC who reigned supreme. He placed first on both Saturday and Sunday, earning him the title of King. Lapierre walks away with instant global exposure throughout the skate world, a spot on DC's Canadian amateur team and $7000 of the $10,000 purse. He will also receive a “SHAZAM” in Color Magazine, where he will be partnered with some of the best photographers and writers in the industry.

Plus, not only did DC hook up the skaters this weekend, at the end of the King Of Vancouver, a cheque for $10,000 was presented to the city of Vancouver for repairs and maintenance on the downtown skate plaza. The money will help ensure that the plaza remains the center for the Vancouver skate scene for years to come.



Under sunny blue skies, it was a fun filled and entertaining weekend at the skatepark for myself and the massive crowd who joined me.