African Gymnastics Union (UAG)
ALGIERS (ALG) - LAUSANNE (SUI) FIG Office, November 20, 2009: The African Gymnastics Union (UAG) will celebrate the 20th anniversary of its founding in 2010. It was on October 24, 1990 that eight African federations signed the founding document, which was ratified by the FIG General Assembly later that year in Frankfurt (GER).
With its founding President Mr Mohamed Yamani at its head, the Union today counts 24 federations, with regular gymnast participation in every FIG calendar event.
Evolution
The African Gymnastics Union was created in Algiers 19 years ago. Since its founding in 1990, the union has grown from an initial 8 African federations to encompass a total of 24.
African gymnastics is constantly evolving; as the gymnasts obtain a higher technical level, the African Championships become more appealing. The championships and the African Games have won the favour of local television no matter which country has organised the event, and coverage has taken on an international dimension.
The championships have been organised in Algeria, Egypt, Moricci, Tunisia, Senegal, Namibia, South Africa and Zimbabwe. And the African Games in Algeria, Egypt, South Africa Nigeria and Zimbabwe.
In terms of judging for competitions, Africa is proud to claim a number of FIG-breveted judges, boasting international experts in every discipline. Some of these have judged world championships, world cup series and Olympic Games events, with special mention for those named among the 5 top best judges worldwide. The honour was bestowed upon two Algerian judges, Mr Hadji Smain and Hadji Abdelmadjid.
The African Gymnastics Union (UAG) website was created to distribute information and promote a greater awareness of our activities. To our surprise, a significant number of internet users from a range of African and non-African countries have visited. The International Gymnastics Federation links to www.uagym.org, as does the Asian Union, the European Union and a goodly number of other African gymnastics federations.
Africa is a fascinating continent. Home to 54 countries, each with its own culture and lifestyle, gymnastics is in its early stages in some while is reaches peak levels in others. African gymnasts were present at the Olympic Games as early as 1948 in London, an historic event that we have highlighted under “History” at uagym.org.
The African Gymnastics Union will celebrate the 20th anniversary of its founding in 2010, with a series of festivals, one of which will be held in Algeria, the birthplace of the UAG. Africa’s best gymnasts will be there alongside a palette of international guests representing the various disciplines.
Another important event at the UAG is the organisation of the Qualifications for the Youth Olympic Games in March of 2010. The event will be held parallel to the 10th African Championships in Namibia, which feature the different disciplines listed in the UAG Technical Regulations.
Keep in mind that the Namibia Gymnastics Federation was a founding member of our union back in 1990 in Algiers, and that it successfully organised the 4th African Championships in 1996; a small federation that has grown into what it is today.
