Innoskate Festival

About

Skateboarding will feature for the first time in the Olympics 2020, with the UK Street League Qualifying event at the Copper Box Arena. Join us in celebrating this moment through a series of discussions and demonstrations, exploring what the future holds for the inclusion of skateboarding in the Paralympics, and how skateboarding can influence public space. 

Try out a range of obstacles for skaters of all levels and abilities, created by Design for Manufacture MArch student Bedir Bekar, and learn about the techniques used to produce these obstacles and the relationship between skateboarding, architecture and engineering.

Skate, invent, eat, drink, and have fun!

After the event all obstacles will be gifted to local skate parks.

Schedule

10:00 | Opening

The festival officially begins! Come and skate on our obstacles or visit the Innoskate Education Design Studio.

10:30 – 11:00 | Panel Discussion 1

60 Years of Skateboard Innovation and Invention

• Paul Schmitt, Inventor and skateboard designer/manufacturer
• Paul Sohi, Industrial Designer at Autodesk
• Ryan Clements, The Boardr

11:00 | Educational Design Studio

Construct skateable obstacles with help from Bartlett students and skaters.

11:15 | Panel Discussion 2

Skating Spaces: Skateboarding and Evolving Conceptions of Public Space

• Alexis Sablone, Champion Skateboarder and Architect
• Stuart Maclure, Long Live South Bank (LLSB)
• Miki Vuckovich, Executive Director of the Tony Hawk Foundation
• Iain Borden, Professor of Architecture, UCL 

12:00 – 15:30 | Free

Use this time to visit the Innoskate Education Design Studio, or join in with a Beginner Skateboarding Instruction on the obstacles.

15:45 – 16:15 | Panel Discussion 3

When Culture Meets Sport: Skateboarding and the Olympic Movement

• Pierre Fratter-Bardy, Head of Strategy and Development, Olympic Games Department, International Olympic Committee
• Lucy Adams, Chair and Elected Director for Skateboard England
• Josh Friedberg, CEO of USA Skateboarding 

16:30 – 17:00 | Panel Discussion 4

Innovation Driving Accessibility: Adaptive Skateboarding and the Road to the Paralympics

Speakers

• Dan Mancina, Adaptive Skateboarder, Blind Skateboarding Advocate
• Oscar Loreto, Jr., Adaptive Skateboarder, USA Skateboarding Board of Directors
• Aaron “Wheelz” Fotheringham, WCMX
• Catherine Holloway, Director, UCL Global Disability Innovation Hub

Moderators

• Jeff Brodie, Deputy Director, Smithsonian’s Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation
• Josh Friedberg, Executive Director, USA Skateboarding

17:20 | Best Trick Contest

Calling all skaters (with a signed waiver) to come and show off your best tricks!

17:45 | Closing 

There will be closing remarks before the festival closes at 18:00.

• Follow Innoskate on Instagram
• Keep an eye on USA Skateboarding News and Invention Events to stay up-to-date with announcements.

More information

Innoskate

A collaboration between the Smithsonian's Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation, leaders of the skateboard community, and museum and university partners, the Innoskate education and outreach programme are committed to inspiring diverse audiences to unleash their inherent creativity and inventive thinking. 

Public Innoskate festivals are at the core of this, celebrating skateboarding's history and culture to spark the imaginations of young people. Key elements include presentations and discussions with legendary skaters, inventors, scientists, engineers, and artists on topics ranging from neuroscience to street art; family-friendly hands-on invention and STEAM activities; art education projects; learn-to-skate clinics and skate demonstrations; acquisition of skate artefacts for museum collections; and of course, a live best-trick contest.

The Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation

The Lemelson Center is part of the Smithsonian Institute, the world’s largest museum, education and research complex based in the USA, focusing on the study of invention and innovation. The centre’s activities advance scholarship on the history of invention, share stories about inventors and their work and nurture creativity in young people.

USA Skateboarding

As the recognised governing body for skateboarding in the United States, USA Skateboarding (USAS) is responsible for the selection, training, and fielding of national teams along with the support of all American skateboarders competing in the Olympic Games, Pan American Games, and other sanctioned team events.

USAS is dedicated to promoting and supporting the sport of Skateboarding while striving to guarantee that Skateboarding continues to provide the unique characteristics relevant to the sport's participants, and maintaining the integrity and authenticity of Skateboarding as a sport, a passion, and a lifestyle.

East Bank

East Bank is a new £1.1 billion powerhouse of culture, education, innovation and growth being built on Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in Stratford, east London. East Bank will be spread across three sites – UCL East (UCL’s new campus), Stratford Waterfront (BBC, the V&A including a partnership with the Smithsonian Institution, Sadler’s Wells and UAL’s London College of Fashion) and Here East (the V&A's new Collection and Research Centre, and an existing space for UCL).

Access

All our event spaces are accessible. For any additional support or information, please email or call 020 3108 7337.

Image: Innoskate 2013 © Chris Haslam