Matias Dell Olio finds a way to weather the storm at Jackalope Virginia Beach 2026

Jackalope brought the vibes to Virginia Beach again this year and the men's street competition delivered one of the more memorable setups the contest scene has seen in a while. The pirate-themed course was back once more with creative and well-built lines and it gave the whole event a personality that most contests sorely lack. Full marks to the builders on that one.

The broadcast: someone dial it back

Let's get the one gripe out of the way early. The commentary was once more not up to par with Todd Richards and this time, Jaime Reyes had a bad habit of dropping an enthusiastic "Oh!" on literally every single trick, and after about the third heat, it started to wear thin. We get it — the skating is incredible. But when every single thing gets the same reaction, nothing feels special anymore.

Commentators are part of the experience, and a little more range would go a long way. Where's Gary Rogers when we need him?

Jackalope

Semifinals: wind & wipeouts

The semifinals featured skaters going head-to-head in side-by-side runs — a format that still doesn't fully land. There's something about it that feels disconnected from what street skating actually is. The simultaneous chaos pulls focus and makes it harder to appreciate either skater fully. It's a crowd-friendly concept, but it doesn't always serve the broadcasting.

What also didn't help was the wind. It was absolutely howling out there, turning jump tricks into a legitimate gamble and making consistency near-impossible for everyone on the course.

The moment that stopped everyone cold was Nick Todero's face smash — a nasty slam that had the crowd holding its breath. The kind of bail that reminds you how real the stakes are every time these guys drop in.

watch the full semifinals breakdown here

Jackalope

Jackalope

Finals: sick skating, weird scoring

Once more, the way the finals is done and scored made it hard to follow and the commentary team didn't fill in the gaps.

The skating itself had its moments though, with Jake Ilardi, last year's winner, made it back to the finals and showed he belongs there — but couldn't quite replicate his 2025 magic, falling short of the podium. Micky Papa had an incredibly strong showing once again, landing himself in second place for the second consecutive year — at some point that kind of consistency deserves its own spotlight. But the day belonged to Matias Dell Olio, who put together the kind of performance that cuts through all the noise to take the win cleanly.

watch the full finals breakdown here

Jackalope

Jackalope

Virginia Beach delivered a beautiful backdrop and a course worth talking about. Here's hoping the next edition finds a way to bring the quality of the broadcasting anywhere close to the quality of skateboarding we saw this weekend.