Skate Vert is one of the most intense freestyle sports, with a high degree of difficulty and wall to wall excitement throughout. So when Nitro World Games welcomed the discipline in 2018, it felt like a no-brainer.

When the dust settled, Moto Shibata edged out a stacked field, with Elliot Sloan and Jono Schwan also making the podium. In a noteworthy result, Tate Carew, the first-ever winner of Nitro World Games Unlocked: Skate Vert, finished in sixth. Unlocked is a competition where up-and-comers compete for a spot in the semifinal, so to finish sixth overall was a huge accomplishment for the young athlete.