The 2015 World Gymnastics Championships are less than a week away and over 600 gymnasts from around the globe are descending on The SSE Hydro in search of world title glory.
10 days of action start on Friday 23rd October culminating on Sunday 1st November, and it’s not too late to snap up a ticket for what promises to be a memorable sporting occasion taking place in the heart of Glasgow. Here’s our 5 reasons why you’d be mad to miss it!
1. The Spectacle Artistic gymnastics in the flesh is guaranteed to thrill. With the best men and women on the planet pushing themselves to the limit of their physical powers, plenty of jaw-dropping action for spectators is guaranteed.
The women’s event has four disciplines – the Vault, Uneven Bars, Beam and Floor – and was made famous at the 1976 Montreal Olympics when Romania’s Nadia Comaneci became the first female gymnast to be awarded a perfect score of 10 at an Olympic Games. The men compete over six disciplines – the Floor, Pommel Horse, Rings, Vault, Parallel Bars, and Horizontal Bar – and the Hydro crowd is in for a treat as the venue prepares to welcome Japan’s Kohei Uchimura (see below), considered by many to be the greatest male gymnast of all-time.
2. The Venue The SSE Hydro has established itself as an iconic venue for live sport. No one who experienced the atmosphere during Glasgow 2014 when the arena hosted the gymnastics competition, along with the boxing and netball finals, is likely to forget the noise and excitement generated by a packed crowd. This 13,000 seat venue is simply perfect for a big sporting occasion.
3. Claudia Fragapane A rapidly rising star who sprung to prominence at last year’s Commonwealth Games when
she made history by winning four gold medals for England including the all-around title, Fragapone (pictured) looks set to light up the women’s competition. Having followed up her Glasgow 2014 success with a a silver medal in this year’s European Championship in the floor event, Fragapone is looking to medal at the Hydro in both the floor and the vault where she excels.
4. Home Interest Claudia Fragapane is part of a six-strong GB women’s team that includes 2008 Olympian Rebecca Downie and her younger sister Ellie Downie, the 2015 European all-around bronze medallist who makes her World Championship debut. British champion Amy Tinkler, World University champion Kelly Simm and triple Commonwealth Games medal winner Ruby Harrold complete the line-up for the GB women.
In the men’s team reigning British champion Daniel Purvis will provide plenty of home interest after striking gold for Scotland on the parallel bars at last year’s Commonwealth Games, to compliment his bronze on the men’s rings. Purvis is joined by three of his 2012 Olympic bronze winning teammates who are Max Whitlock, Kristian Thomas and Louis Smith. European junior all-around champion Nile Wilson and English all-around champion Brinn Bevan complete the GB men’s team line-up. The Men’s All-Around Team Final takes place on the evening of Wednesday 28th October.
5. The Legend In the world of gymnastics when people say the name of Japan’s Kohei Uchimura they do so in reverential tones. A near mythical figure, Uchimura is a sporting wonder who has five Olympic medals to his name along with five consecutive world titles in the men’s all-around event. On Sunday 25th October he will step into the Hydro arena as he embarks on a bid to win his sixth world title. Should he secure gold in the Men’s All-Around Final on the evening of Friday 30th October, Uchimura’s legacy as greatest male gymnast in history will surely be cemented.
So what are you waiting for? Grab your tickets now for the World Gymnastics Championships, the greatest gymnastics show of 2015!