The streets of Asunción will become the stage for one of the most important events on the international speed skating calendar on October 18. The capital of Paraguay will welcome some of the world’s top specialists for a race with an unusual feature: the same course will determine the Marathon World Championship titles and award points for an official World Cup stage of the World Skate Marathon Tour (WSMT). This combination will raise the competitive stakes while bringing the spectacle directly into the heart of the city.
The race will also arrive at a special moment on the calendar. It will take place on the final day of the World Skate Games ASU26, following more than two weeks dedicated to roller sports, and will also close the program of the Speed Skating World Championships. For the athletes, Asunción will represent much more than another stop on the season: it will be the meeting point for national teams, Tour teams, individual competitors, masters and amateur skaters, turning the marathon into an encounter between the elite and an international community united by the same passion for skating.
World Skate Games ASU26 will bring skating to the heart of Asunción
The Speed Skating World Championships will take place from October 10 to 18 as part of the World Skate Games ASU26. The track events will be held at the Paraguayan Olympic Committee, while the road races, 100-meter sprint and highly anticipated marathon will bring the competition into central Asunción. The program will feature junior and senior athletes competing in sprint, points, elimination and relay events, building nine days of competition toward the long-distance race on Sunday, October 18.
The Paraguayan event will welcome the World Skate Marathon Tour after a season that began on March 29 in Shanghai, where more than 1,200 professional, amateur and young skaters took to the city’s streets. Bart Swings claimed victory in the men’s professional category, while Lianne van Loon won the women’s race after a tight final sprint. Later, the Challenger stage in Pamplona brought further victories for Swings and María José Quiroz. That international journey will now lead to Asunción, where the pressure will be different given the importance of the titles and points at stake.
A marathon with world titles and World Skate Marathon Tour points
The Asunción race will have a unique competitive dimension because every result will have an impact on two fronts. Athletes will seek to become marathon world champions while also competing for WSMT ranking points, prize money and the Tour leader jerseys. National teams, squads registered in the circuit and individual competitors will share the course, while the masters categories will include age groups ranging from 30 to 75 years and over. This broad participation will allow different generations to be part of a day built around the same distance and the same challenge.
Participation will begin to take shape months before the skaters reach the starting line. Official registration through the World Skate Infinity platform will be open from July 1 to September 10, 2026. Athletes representing their national federations must be registered directly by those federations, while independent and masters athletes will be able to complete the registration process individually for the WSMT Asunción stage. Amateur registration will be managed by the Local Organizing Committee, expanding an event that aims to maintain the inclusive spirit of the Tour while the world’s elite prepare to compete in the heart of the Paraguayan capital in one of the season’s most significant marathons.
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