Who knew Milton would be hotspot for international speed skaters? Here's how it happened.

When you think of the top places for inline speed skating in the United States, you'll likely have to dig deep because most Americans aren't emotionally invested in the sport.

But those who know and love the sport, little old Milton, Florida, is gaining a reputation as among the best places in the country for competitive inline speed skaters seeking national and international success. Weber's Skate World on Stewart Street debuted its outdoor 200-meter parabolic track this past week for the 10th annual Emerald Coast Inline Challenge, a six-day event that attracted more than 400 national and international competitors.

With its 100-meter inside track - the same rink that recreational skaters mosey around on with pop music blasting during non-training hours - and now its outdoor track, Weber's Skate World has become a destination for those training for future greatness.

Just ask renowned French speed skating coach Christophe Audoire, who has served as coach for the national teams of China, Germany, India and Thailand and who also coached the French junior team. He's now, temporarily, coaching local skaters.

"It's just great − an international level bank track," Audoire said. "There is a great indoor rink here and everything is really world class. For sure, this is one of the best in the country. There just aren't many bank tracks in this country like there are in Italy, Columbia, France and others. This is a super-high-quality facility."

The track has become known nationwide.

"I used to live in Idaho but moved here for the track,'' said 19-year-old Paige Dawson, who, along with brother Ryan Dawson, 17, are members of the Emerald Coast Speed team's elite squad. The local club is coached by owner David Weber. "It's just so exciting to be able to have someplace like this, it is really incredible. It's just something I never thought I would have access to."

The outdoor track was built by Weber next to the indoor rink to position Northwest Florida as a national leader in the sport, and, someday, to bring the sport's biggest competitions to Milton.

Weber's Skate World will host the 2024 United States Roller Sports Track and Roads Championships this summer, June 7-16.

"The whole deal was that I built this track to the get the World Championships here," said Weber, a former champion speed skater. "I built it to their specs. They will want to come here, especially after this week." Weber was referring to World Skate, the international governing body for sports performed on skating wheels.

Weber, whose daughter Torrie Webber, 16, is a member of the Emerald Coast Speed team's elite squad and won many junior championships, purchased the long-standing indoor rink in 2018, refurbishing the wood surface. He is heavily invested in growing the sport locally and nationally and has hired Audoire to coach his elite squad for three weeks.

On a recent day, Audoire had his students sitting around the indoor rink − the temperature was hovering around freezing at the time − going over things as elementary as skate equipment to proper ways to stretch and prepare for practice.

Nearby stood Kim Aiken, a former Team USA member who Weber hired last fall to be track manager. Aiken moved from South Florida to Milton for the job after working for an Australian skate track.

Previous coverage: Speed skating in Milton? Here's how this skating program is creating national champs

"It's a one-of-a-kind facility," she said. "You can't find this kind of track with this kind of surface anywhere in America. You have the outdoor track and the indoor rink. It's the best of both worlds right here in Milton, Florida."

Milton City Council member Jeff Snow assists Weber at the facility, and the two are longtime friends. Snow is also a former competitive skater.

"You know, we had news people from out of town here covering (the Emerald Coast Inline Challenge)," Snow said. "I just saw one report from Oklahoma City about the track and event. Dave has basically made Milton, Florida, the mecca for speed skating in America and people travel here all the time just to skate."

Even before the new outdoor parabolic track opened, the Emerald Coast Inline Challenge was already attracting a few hundred top competitors each year, including past-winner Erin Jackson, who would later transfer to ice speed skating. Jackson, an Ocala resident, won the gold medal in the Women's 500 meter speed skating event at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, becoming the first Black woman to win a Winter Olympic gold medal in an individual sport.

"This has been my dream for 40 years," Weber said while watching his skate team race around the indoor rink. "It's here. We have something special."

This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: Weber's Skate World in Milton brings international inline competitors