Rollerblading: The Great Return Of Roller Skates

Notice to those nostalgic for the 1980s: the roller skates of our childhood are making a comeback! They are now called quad rollerblades and their design has been somewhat modernized, but the principle remains the same. This successful comeback could inspire gift ideas for next Christmas.

Rollerblades with a retro look

Roller skating fans, forget about inline skates, whose wheels are aligned like the blade of an ice skate!

From now on, the trend is for good old roller skates with 4 wheels, two under the arch and two under the heel.

Renamed rollers quad, these skates that were so popular in the 1980s are making a comeback on French feet. You might even find some at the foot of your Christmas tree this year!

A practice popularized by social networks

While some have been skating since their childhood in the 1980s, the average age of most new skaters is around 20 years.

These new quad roller enthusiasts have been inspired and excited by roller demonstrations on social media. These bluffing videos have helped bring skating back into the mainstream:

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Emily (@yskaaate)



Since the lockdown, athletes have been posting on social media with roller skates on their feet.

As evidence of the renewed popularity of the sport, some of these videos have been viewed several million times.

A new discipline in the gym

Surfing on the roller quad trend, some gyms offer their subscribers to train with roller skates on their feet.

The discipline, which is practiced in music and in a good mood is called roller dance.

And the classes are sold out, especially those of Laurence Sabas, a roller dance star who opened a third class during the year 2021.

View this post on Instagram A publication shared by Laurence Sabas (@laurencesabasrollerdance)


The atmosphere is playful and practitioners come to have fun. However, it should be noted that roller dancing is also a complete discipline.

It works the muscles in depth... as long as you manage to keep your balance! This is the difficulty of this new sport in vogue!

Ever more ingenious equipment

As you can see, classic roller skates are making a comeback, both for outdoor use and in gyms.

It should be noted, however, that today's quad rollerblades have little in common with the first models, which were supposedly designed in Belgium in the 18th century.

Taking advantage of the revival of this discipline in France, the French company Flaneurz has come up with an ingenious system that allows adapting wheels under all pairs of sneakers.

Thanks to Flaneurz (link below), you can turn your pairs of sneakers into roller skates in two clicks.

This system is very convenient, simple and lightweight to use for all your daily commutes: another good reason to get back into roller skating!