Skateboarding
Skateboarding
Skate to survive at KASSO – here’s what you need to know and how to watch
KASSO Fest Skate & Sound is a skateboarding obstacle-course race like no other; a showdown for the ultimate skate warriors - coming to the US for the first time. Here’s how it works and how to watch.
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Making its United States debut in Long Beach, California on March 21–22, the two-day KASSO Fest Skate & Sound is a fast and unpredictable event made for fearless skaters, blending high-level skateboarding, obstacle-course challenges, community-driven moments and live music into one high-energy festival.
Read on to discover more about the course, the line-up and the origins of this unique obstacle-course race, then watch the action live on Red Bull TV and Red Bull Skateboarding on YouTube.
01
What is KASSO?
Unlike traditional skate contests judged on style, KASSO is structured as a race against time – a course-versus-skater format where riders must adapt to each obstacle as they go. Competitors must navigate technical obstacles with speed and precision to stay in the game – missing an obstacle or posting the slowest time means elimination.
The result is a format that combines the creativity of skateboarding with the tension and unpredictability of a challenge show.
Described as "the anti-contest contest", KASSO reimagines skate competition by shifting the focus away from competing for the sake of winning, judging panels and podium finishes, and toward creativity, flow, fun and problem-solving across dynamic obstacle courses – mirroring the escalating drama typical of modern game shows.
The rail at KASSO 2024 was a challenge, to put it mildly
© Keisuke Kato/Red Bull Content Pool
02
Competition format
KASSO is super different, because it's not like your average contest
The KASSO event follows a staged challenge structure similar to physical game shows, with competitors navigating progressively more demanding courses.
Twenty-eight professional skaters will drop in one at a time, racing against the clock through a sequence of technical obstacles. Riders must complete each stage without error: failing to clear an obstacle or recording the slowest time will result in elimination.
Only those who successfully pass each stage progress to the final round, where one last run determines the winner and the KASSO crown.
"KASSO is super different, because it's not like your average contest," says Jamie Foy, the two-time Thrasher Skater of the Year. "You're not competing against the person next to you. You're just competing against the course and yourself, because there could be multiple winners. It's whoever finishes all the courses together."
Jamie Foy shredding on the KASSO
© Red Bull Content Pool/KASSO
03
The course at KASSO
At KASSO, skaters will be thrown into four different set-ups that hit speed, control and how weird you can get on a board, plus a new Jamie Foy rail that’s looking seriously sketchy and soaked. More and more of the course is being revealed and, it must be said, it's looking wild. Here's what the skaters will be facing across an action-packed weekend:
- MT FUJI – Course 1: Opening stage testing downhill speed and control.
- RailCoaster Big Boy Foy Rail – Course 2: A rail-focused obstacle course designed by Jamie Foy, known for his technical rail skating.
- The Grasshopper – Course 3: A brand-new challenge debuting at the Long Beach festival, built to test adaptability and creativity. Here's a sneak preview.
- MILLION JUMP – Course 4: The final fortress-style stage combining large jumps and complex obstacles.
Jamie Foy is creating a fiendish new course at KASSO
© Red Bull Content Pool/KASSO
04
Origins of KASSO
With game shows entering a new era, driven by action sports, producers are moving beyond quizzes and high-stakes formats, turning instead to real athletes and unscripted performances to deliver the spectacle and drama audiences crave.
Originally launched in Japan in 2024, KASSO began as a televised skateboarding challenge show where professional riders and local talents take on elaborate obstacle courses built specifically for each location.
Created by Tokyo Broadcasting System Television, Inc. (TBS), the network behind popular game shows like TMXC (Most Extreme Elimination Challenge) – the international version of Takeshi’s Castle and Ninja Warrior – the format unites elements of racing, escalating elimination rounds and survival-style competition.
05
KASSO Fest Skate & Sound in Long Beach
Already established internationally, KASSO makes its highly anticipated U.S. debut in Long Beach, California. By launching in a city with deep roots in skate and surf culture, KASSO is tapping into an audience that lives at the intersection of sport, music and lifestyle.
The event will bring together some of the biggest names in skateboarding, including homegrown talents such as Jamie Foy, CJ Collins and Torey Pudwill, along with international representation from the likes of Japan's Jiro Platt.
The KASSO gang hanging out
© Red Bull Content Pool/KASSO
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06
Which skaters will be at KASSO?
With 28 of the world's top skateboarders taking on the KASSO challenge – 15 on Saturday and 13 on Sunday – only the survivors of each day's three courses will meet in the final on Sunday evening. The line-up (subject to change) is as follows:
Satuday, March 21
Sunday, March 22
Leo Romero
Kyle Walker
Greyson Fletcher
Aaron 'Jaws' Hornoki
Tom Schaar
Dominick Walker
Braden Hoban
Dashawn. Jordan
Cordano Russell
Franky Villani
Pedro Delfino
RaphaelUeda
Georgia Martin
David Loy
Kento Urano
Taylor Kirby
Ren Suematsu
Ayahiro Uratsuka
Hayate Kamimura
Yurin Fujii
Julian Lewis
Yuro Nagahara
Sora Negishi
Torey Pudwill is one of the confirmed skaters at KASSO in Long Beach
© Anthony Acosta / Red Bull Content Pool
07
How to watch KASSO live?
Kasso Fest Skate & Sound livestream
Chaos meets pure joy as Kasso Fest Skate & Sound goes live from Long Beach for the first time worldwide.
If you can’t be in Long Beach, catch all the action on the final day, March 22, live on Red Bull TV and Red Bull Skateboarding on YouTube.
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