Baku to Host FIG World Cup Finals

Azerbaijan, a country that is achieving a lot of success in gymnastics in such a short span of time, continues to organize prestigious international competitions. 

The final Rhythmic Gymnastics World Cup of the season will be held in Baku, the capital city of Azerbaijan, on 22nd to 24th of July, 2016.

Fans and audiences will get the opportunity to witness the remarkable performances of some of the most prominent gymnasts coming from 22 different countries. The competition will take place 2 weeks ahead of the most important event of the season – the 2016 Rio Olympic Games.

Thirty four prominent gymnasts and eleven groups will compete in group exercises on the first two days of the event. The final day of the World Cup finals will feature performances from different gymnastics disciplines.

Nine World Cup competitions have been hosted by the International Gymnastics Federation this year. At the World Cup in Baku, a special awarding ceremony will be organized for the athletes and teams taken the first places according to the best four results shown at previous Series.

“The winner of the annual World Cup is the gymnast or group with the highest number of points of the all World Cup Series Ranking Lists (Groups as well as All-Around for each apparatus) after the last event of the year.” (source: FIG)

Azerbaijan will be represented by the First European Games’ silver medalist Marina Durunda. The silver medalist of the European Championships in the junior category, Zhala Piriyeva, who has just joined the senior program, will also compete in the event. 

Siyana Vasileva, Ayshan Bayramova, Aleksandra Platonova, Diana Doman and Elif Zeynep Celep will compete for Azerbaijan in the group exercises at the World Cup event.

The competition will also feature a spectacular Opening Ceremony (22nd of July), which will be directed by Mariana Vasileva, the Head Coach of the Azerbaijan National Team. There will also be a traditional Gala on 24th of July, where the young gymnasts – the future international competitors of Azerbaijan – will deliver an outstanding performance for the rhythmic gymnastics fans to watch.

The tickets for the said event can be purchased at the ticket office of the MGA, National Gymnastics Arena, and also at the “Bazerstore supermarket. The tickets are priced from 5 to 20 manats, and a discount will be provided for those who will avail tickets for all 3 days of the World Cup competition. Students will also be provided with a special discount.

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Baku To Host FIG World Cup; VTB Extends Sponsorship to FIG

Azerbaijan’s capital city, Baku, is getting ready to welcome gymnastics fans and elites at the FIG World Challenge Cup AGF Trophy 2016, to be hosted in the country for the first time early this year.

The said competition will be held at the National Gymnastics Arena from 19th to 21st of February 2016.

A total of 146 participants representing 19 different countries are expected to compete in the capital city of Baku.

Taking place at the National Gymnastics Arena, which accommodated six gymnastics disciplines during the 1st Baku European Games, the most anticipated competition will involve 46 men and 22 women gymnasts to fight for the medals.

Several notable gymnasts, comprised of the Japanese three-time World Champion (Floor and Team event) Kenzo Shirai, Japan’s Pommel Horse World bronze medallist Kaya Kazuma, Germany’s two-time Olympic silver medallist Marcel Nguyen, Israel’s European Floor Champion Alexander Shatilov and other prominent gymnasts will showcase their breathtaking performance at the Baku World Cup.

Prominent female gymnasts such as Uzbekistan’s European Champion Oksana Chusovitina, Brazil’s Youth Olympic Games Floor Champion Favia Lopes Saraiva, and three-time World Cup series champion Dorina Boeczoego will also participate in the said competition.

The most sought after gymnasts would definitely be Oleg Stepko, who won the bronze medal at the Parallel Bars event of the World Championships, and was the only Azerbaijani gymnast who took home five medals at the 1st European Games, as well as his compatriot Petro Pakhnyuk, who won the bronze medal in a team competition along with Stepko at the 2015 Baku Games.

The representative of the Women’s Azerbaijani Gymnastics would be the World Challenge Cup silver medalist Kristina Pravdina, along with Marina Nekrasova, Yuliya Inshina and Mariia Smirnova.

Aside from the upcoming Artistic Gymnastics World Cup, the country will also host a World Cup series in Trampoline Gymnastics on 5th and 6th of March 2016.

Baku was also assigned to host the European Championships in Trampoline Gymnastics in 2018.

VTB Bank Extends Sponsorship to FIG

Russia’s VTB Bank, which since 2009 has been a major sponsor of the sport of Gymnastics, has extended its contract with the International Federation of Gymnastics for 2016.

FIG’s President Bruno Grandi and VTB’s First Deputy Chairman and Vice President of FIG Vasily Titov sealed the agreement last Friday during a meeting at the FIG Headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland.

The agreement includes a donation of US$1 million, of which would be used as developmental funds for the continental unions.

"VTB has the pleasure of once more renewing our sponsorship with the FIG and thereby supporting gymnastics, one of the three major Olympic sports," said Titov.

"We are very happy to be able to contribute to the development of this beautiful sport around the world."

"As I begin my final year as head of the FIG, I am delighted to see our loyal partner confirm its support," Grandi said.

"This contribution is targeted toward the development of sport on all five continents, which is excellent news for our continental unions."

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