Diego Poncelet sets Guinness record for fastest standing skateboard run at 151.83 km/h

The record run

Diego Poncelet, a 27-year-old Spaniard and two-time world downhill skateboarding champion, reached 151.83 km/h (94.34 mph) on a closed stretch of Route des Éboulements in Quebec, Canada, on 22 September 2026. Guinness World Records certified the run through an official judge, and the title covers the highest speed ever reached on a skateboard in a standing position. The mark beats the 146.73 km/h set by Pete Connolly on the same hill in 2017. Guinness World Records announced the result on 15 October, and Red Bull, Poncelet's sponsor, released video of the run. Focus put the new speed about 5 km/h faster than the previous record.

Five days of waiting for wind

Poncelet's first trial run reached 146.88 km/h, already enough to beat Connolly's mark, but he kept working on the run. Wind conditions then forced him to wait five days for a suitable window. When he returned to the road, a tailwind of 10 to 14 km/h from the north-east carried him past 150 km/h. The course is about 2.2 km long and includes a 600 m straight with a gradient of up to 18%. Focus reports that earlier world records were also set on the same slope.

Fear and the rider's view

Poncelet spoke to The Athletic in a Zoom interview from Spain, his home country, although he was born in Mexico and has travelled widely since. He described fear as part of the sport rather than something to avoid, and said he sees it as a force that pushes him beyond his limits.

Fear is part of the fun.

He recalled a fall on a road in Mallorca, along a stretch called the 'corner of death' that tracks the edge of a cliff, where a pole that happened to be well placed saved him. Since then he has had other accidents, which he described as part of the game. Falls in the sport can be disastrous, and he said he tries to accept them as part of the experience.

I think fear is beautiful.

Years of preparation

Poncelet said he had spent half his life thinking about breaking this record and had dedicated the past four years to working towards it. He estimated he made 15 attempts this year before the successful run in September, on the closed mountain road in Charlevoix where the previous record was set. The earlier record was set on the same road nine years ago. Guinness lists the result as the fastest speed reached on a skateboard in a standing position.

Timeline of the attempt

The sequence runs from Connolly's 2017 record to Guinness's announcement on 15 October, with a five-day wait between the first trial run and the record run on 22 September.