As the days pass by, the adrenalin increases in Gijon and the Spanish city is transformed little by little into the world-wide capital of the inline skating with the arrival of the first foreign athletes.

As we announced, the Belgian Wouter Hebbrecht was the first to arrive and promises to be one of the main stars in Gijon 2008. Next the Australians Michael Byrne and Angeline Thomas arrived to Gijon and finally some New Zealander athletes stepped on Spanish ground.

On the morning of August 19th the Spanish Team with 31 athletes were the first ones to train at the bank track directed by the Argentinean Carlos Lugea. Later the foreigners arrived headed by Hebbrecht who skated for one hour at the fast Gijon’s bank track.

"Well it’s a very fast track with a lot of potentially fast lines on it, it will be great racing with plenty of chances to make passes. The track also seems to grip when you skate fast and that will make it interesting for a lot of skaters" said Hebbrecht after his training.

Also some Australian skaters trained this morning in Gijon. "The track is smooth, feels easy to skate and I expect it to be fast. I have only been on it twice" said Angeline Thomas.

New Zealand was also skating today and they were represented by their main stars. The sprinter Kalon Dobbin will look for revenge in Gijon after his injury that put him out in Cali 2007. Reyon Kay, Scott Arlidge, Daniel Nation, Peter Michael and Kalon’s brother Shane Dobbin were also training today.

The "kiwi" star Nicole Begg was also skating today in Gijon and she leaves for a few weeks, her home in Weinfelden (Switzerland), which has been her home as she competes in the World Inline Cup, to train, her focus now: to be in the top of the world again.