Youth divisions take center stage at USA Roller Sports nationals in Lincoln

Primary and elementary skaters were among the national-title races on USA Roller Sports’ July 24 BoxCast slate in Lincoln, Nebraska, where Day 8 of the artistic championships put the youth divisions at the center of the morning. The schedule showed why those brackets matter: the same championship ladder that crowns senior-level contenders starts with the youngest skaters learning figures, loops and the pressure of judging at nationals.

After a break from 7:05 a.m. to 7:20 a.m., the program opened a tight run of finals from 7:20 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. with the Primary A Girls Figures Final, Elementary A Girls Figures Final, Advanced Men Figures Final and Primary A Boys Loops Final, followed by the Sophomore A Women Loops Final. The next block, from 8:30 a.m. to 9:25 a.m., added the Freshman A Women Figures Final, Sophomore A Women Figures Final and Elementary A Girls Loops Final. Multiple judging panels were assigned across the divisions, a reminder that even the youth slate at nationals was being handled with the same technical structure as the sport’s top end.

USA Roller Sports listed The Graduate Hotel, 141 N 9th St, Lincoln, NE, as the host hotel for the 2026 Artistic and Speed National Championships and set spectator fees at $15 for daily entry, $30 for a three-day pass, $40 for a four-day pass, $50 for a five-day pass, $60 for a six-day pass, $70 for a seven-day pass and $125 for the full art/figure event. The federation also pointed viewers to its BoxCast streaming page, where events were posted once they went live, a setup that made remote access part of the championship experience for families and fans following the title chase from afar.

The broader championships were staged at Speedway Sports Complex near Van Dorn Street and Highway 77, with speed skating running through July 15 and artistic skating following July 17 through Aug. 2. Skaters ranged in age from 3 to 70, a spread that captured how wide the competitive ladder runs in roller sports, from first-time youth title bids to veteran championship starts.

USA Roller Sports has sponsored amateur roller skating competitions since 1937 and was separately incorporated in 1973 as the United States Amateur Confederation of Roller Skating dba USA Roller Sports. Executive director Ricci Porter-Kmetz called it the “Thirty-second year in Lincoln, Nebraska,” a marker of how firmly the city has become tied to the national meet while the youth divisions keep supplying the next generation of standouts.