Worlds Liverpool went surprisingly well.
One of the better worlds in recent memory. Not Glasgow 2015 good — but very good.
35,000 tickets sold and sell-out crowds for the final weekend.
Local fans had much to cheer about. Men & women’s teams both were top 3 — automatic qualification to the Paris Olympics. Six medals total including Gold on Floor for Giarnni Regini-Moran & Jessica Gadirova.
The FREE Championships Fan Zone was great for the kids.
406 volunteers worked 15,000 hours total.
Despite no covid precautions, I didn’t hear of even one gymnast having to withdraw due to the virus. (One medal contender from Taiwan didn’t travel to Liverpool because he had covid, however.)
Nicolas Buompane, FIG secretary general, answered the toughest question at the final Press Conference: Norway and 6 other nations opting not to attend FIG Congress 2022 in Istanbul.
Nicolas explained that FIG currently has no process for banning delegates. It would need to be added to their rules. And that their lawyers have concluded that FIG would lose any court challenge to such a ban.
Watanabe was more philosophical. An international democratic organization should listen to all view points. He respects both the Russian Federation and those who oppose those delegates attending Congress. He hopes that all member Federations will soon be back together as a family.
Personally, I’m worried about China invading Taiwan. In that case, I expect Chinese athletes to be banned from FIG events.
Gymnastics Coaching.com 