Thank you for participating in the 2021 ONE Blade Awards! Your nominations and votes are the driving force behind this annual awards process that is now twelve years old.
For each of those years we have asked you, the bladers that make up the global population of active voices, to provide your ideas on who deserves each of these awards. And for each of those dozen years we have been excited to take the collective temperature of the community and get a snapshot of where rollerblading is during that period of time. Throughout all these years we have learned so much.
For example, there are a lot of trends in rollerblading, but the most irrefutable trend of them all is the fragmentation of our community across different social media platforms. More bladers are interacting with media from more sources than ever before, so it’s only natural that the number of opinions as to who or what entities deserves an award reflect that diversity!
They do! It’s great to see blading’s collective range expand.
Which is why one specific aspect of the open nominations and voting process is such as strength — it focuses attention on the most regularly shared interests within our great big community. It literally finds the people, products and events that break through the noise and land with an audience that then takes time to enter those brands and people and places back into our voting, closing a feedback loop and rewarding that with which they connect the most strongly.
That each of these finalists has make that sort of impression on the blading world should be celebrated.
The ONE Blade Awards do exactly that on behalf of each of you that participated. We congratulate each and every nominee, and especially these finalists for the impact they have had on the blade world during the past 12 months. You keep the wheels turning!
And for the winners, a special word of thanks for the contribution you bring to our paved new world, and a heartfelt congratulations for earning the admiration of your peers from around the world. We look forward to seeing what you do in the new year, and hope to see your names amongst our finalists for years to come.
Here’s to 2022 finding each of us in favorable conditions, dialed in with perfect balance. Thanks for your continued support of ONE!
* * * *
[PEOPLE]
BLADER OF THE YEAR
Demetrios George (42%)
Runners Up:
John Bolino (39%)
Jo Zenk (19%)
BLADIE OF THE YEAR
Chynna Weierstall (37%)
Runners Up:
Mery Muñoz (34%)
Martina Svobodova (29%)
BREAKOUT BLADER OF THE YEAR
llia Savosin (42%)
Runners Up:
Yandriel Silverio (35%)
Tri Tri Rudolf (23%)
HONORARY CHRIS EDWARDS AWARD
FOR MOST POSITIVE BLADE INFLUENCER
Jon Julio (38%)
Runners Up:
Nils Jansons (33%)
Montre Livingston (29%)
[EVENTS]
BEST ONLINE BLADE CONTEST
Winterclash (82%)
Runners Up:
Syeah Skate Grind Challenge (12%)
Fkpb Trick League (6%)
BEST EVENT THAT ACTUALLY HAPPENED
Blading Cup (66%)
Runners Up:
Frankie Morales Invitational (21%)
Bordeaux Real Street (13%)
[INDUSTRY]
BRAND OF THE YEAR
Them Skates (53%)
Runners Up:
Mesmer (30%)
Razors (17%)
PRODUCT OF THE YEAR
Them Skates 909 x Brain Dead (39%)
Runners Up:
50/50 Prime Frame (31%)
Rollerblade Sean Keane Pro Model (30%)
ANGRY YOUTH AWARD FOR BEST MARKETING
Them Skates (42%)
Runners Up:
Mesmer (36%)
Roces (22%)
BLADE SHOP OF THE YEAR
Loco Skates (40%)
Runners Up:
Intuition Skateshop (37%)
Roller Warehouse (23%)
[MEDIA]
BEST EDIT OF THE YEAR (BLADER)
Nils Jansons “Storm” (60%)
Runners Up:
Dominic Bruce “Fifth Floor” (21%)
Bobi Spassov “Domestic Punk” (19%)
BEST SOCIAL MEDIA CLIP(S)
Demetrios George (51%)
Runners Up:
Ilia Savosin (29%)
Damon Franklin (20%)
BLADE VIDEOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR
Ivan Narez (49%)
Runners Up:
Martins Jansons (35%)
Cavin Brinkman (16%)
BLADE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR
Dominik Wagner (60%)
Runners Up:
Sam Cooper (26%)
Steve Steinmetz (14%)
BLADE VOICE OF THE YEAR
Brandon Drummond (42%)
Runners Up:
Tom Moyse (32%)
Miguel Martines (26%)
So those are your 2021 ONE Blade Award winners! Please join us in giving each of them a giant round of applause!
Each of these people, products and events has made an outsized impact on rollerblading in 2021, and we celebrate each of them — and you — for lacing up your blades and being part of our global community.
See you in the streets…
* * * *
Photos used from social media with thanks and appreciation