Gymnastics for All

DORNBIRN (AUT) - LAUSANNE (SUI), FIG Office, June 11, 2009: The press was invited to visit the venue for the premiere FIG Gym for Life Challenge yesterday, set for July 15 – 19, 2009. The event is a new and unique concept designed to crown a winning World Club Champion, and yesterday was a chance for journalists to get a feel for the scope of the contest in terms of numbers: 27 countries, 80 clubs, 1,930 gymnasts.

Seven delegations considering organising a future edition of the Challenge attended as observers. The event responds to a growing demand on the part of a broad swath of the FIG’s amateur gymnasts, notably Gymnastics for All, which translates into some 50 million club member gymnasts worldwide.
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The Austrian organisers are working with a € 530'000 budget, and count on the support of the local population and political authorities of Dornbirn, Vorarlberg and all of Austria. All 1,930 amateur gymnasts will be lodged in local schools, as was the case at the 2007 World Gymnaestrada when the same organisers hosted 23,000 participants!

Thousands of spectators are expected to flock to Dornbirn’s Exhibition Hall and Ice Rink, where the first ever World Club Champion will be crowned.
This world clubs championship will take place every 4 years, alternating with the World Gymnaestrada, the next edition of which is set for 2011 in Lausanne (SUI).