From September 16-18, 2022, Pretty Bay in Birżebbuġa buzzed with excitement as we hosted the inaugural United Through Urban Sports Festival. This vibrant event brought together urban sports enthusiasts, including parkour, BMX, scooter, skateboarding, street workout, and break dancing. Open to all ages, skill levels, and backgrounds, the festival saw over 160 participants register for tryouts and competitions.
The festival kicked off on Friday with training sessions for all participants. Saturday featured thrilling BMX, skateboarding, and scooter competitions at the skatepark, while parkour, street workout, and 3×3 basketball tryouts took place in the basketball court area. The skatepark competitions were a crowd favorite, attracting numerous visitors. Her Excellency Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca, who through the Malta Trust Foundation supported the construction of the skatepark and sponsored the new graffiti for the event, attended along with Birżebbuġa Mayor Scott Camilleri and youth workers from Aġenzija Żgħażagħ. President Karl Naja presented appreciation plaques to these organizations for their significant contributions to street sports and youth empowerment.
BMX Beginners:
- Best Trick: Jacopo Cialdi
- Best Run: Angelo Buttigieg
- Promising BMX Award: Joshua Micallef
BMX Advanced:
- Best Trick: David Aldana
- Best Run: Matthias Dettki
- Promising BMX Award: Maksim Druchenko
Skateboarding Beginners:
- Best Trick: George Golabovic
- Best Run: Jonathan Leander-Engström
- Promising Skater Award: Pablo Hernandez Zarate
Skateboarding Advanced:
- Best Run: Lev Schembri
- Best Trick: Leon Attard
- Up and Coming Skater Award: Fredrick Zammit
Scooter Competition:
- Best Trick: Nelson Cassar
- Best Run: Nicholas Mclean Fiorini
- Promising Scooter Award: Nicholas Mclean Fiorini
Sunday concluded the festival with Parkour and 3×3 basketball competitions. This marked the first official Parkour competition in Malta, organized in collaboration with Leap Squad from Malta and HOP from Hungary. The results were:
Parkour Speed Beginners:
- 1st: Nathan Micallef Ellul
- 2nd: Ashton Sammut
Parkour Speed Advanced:
- 1st: Nathaniel Camilleri
- 2nd: Daniel Caruana Mansueto
- 3rd: Ado Meszaros
Parkour Freestyle:
- 1st: Adam Liptak
- 2nd: Nathaniel Camilleri
- 3rd: Ado Meszaros
The festival was warmly received by the local community and visitors who stopped by to witness the events unfold over the weekend, reinforcing the unity and growth within the urban sports community.
We extend our heartfelt thanks to the prize sponsors: Urban Jungle, Billabong Malta, Quiksilver Malta, Behind Bars Bike Shop, Centrano Distribution, Colony BMX, KFD Skate, Fiction BMX, Division BMX, CORE Action Sports, and Island Skateboarding. Special thanks to Her Excellency Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca and her team from The Malta Trust Foundation, Scott Camilleri and his team from the Kunsill Lokali Birżebbuġa, and the youth workers from Aġenzija Żgħażagħ. Our gratitude also goes to our local partners MSA – Malta Skateboarding Association, Leap Squad – Malta Parkour & Freerunning, Hall of Parkour Hungary – HOP, Elementi and Street Elements Hip Hop Artists, and all the volunteers and partners from the UUM – United Through Urban Movement project.
