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Judging Irish champs

Writer's picture: Samuel WellerSamuel Weller

Hey freestyle friends,


my Irish friend Sam Madden, who I met at the 2018 World Championships, has been organizing the Irish Championships in Dublin for a few years now. As I've been unable to attend the last few years, it was an extra-high priority this year. So I boarded the plane to Dublin on Thursday morning. Once there, I went straight to the sports hall in the north of Dublin where the tournament takes place. A small hall that is privately run. The owner greeted us directly and enthused about the local enthusiasm for freestyle. He has created a small booklet for the small town of Ballymun, where the hall is located, entitled “Ballymun - the healthiest City in the UK”. The warmth and commitment on site was impressive!


So we went straight into a long training session at the place where Ireland's best freestylers will be competing for the title the next day. To get to know the Irish culture better, we went to the pubs in the big city in the evening with Sam and my fellow judges Chris aka CBB (my German “rival”) and Rowdy (top freestyler from the Netherlands). There we felt the sociability of the Irish. On a normal Thursday evening, all the pubs were full and we had to visit several places to finally find a seat. Over an excellent Guinness and probably the best live music I've ever heard in a bar, we chatted about the “good old freestyle beginnings”.


The next day we went to the location in the morning, where the young freestylers were already eagerly warming up. From 9-year-olds and teenagers from the region to experienced lower expert Conor Reynolds, the field of participants was a colorful mix.


After the qualifying circles, it was down to the top 8 in 1vs1 mode. In the end, veteran Conor and lower talent Eddie prevailed. Experience prevailed and Conor took the title. Congratulations to all participants for a good championship! It's great to see so many young competitors representing a country like Ireland despite its small freestyle population!


It was also very interesting to take on the role of a judge. It's often not easy to compare different tricks from two very different freestylers. Or to remember who has already performed which tricks.


Thanks for the organization and here's to many more championships and judging assignments!




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