EDITORIAL

BY PROF. BRUNO GRANDI

FIG PRESIDENT

GLASGOW GLOWS WITH BRILLIANT ARTISTIC WORLDS

A new era has begun. The World Championships are becoming wonderful in every respect, in terms of organisation as well as on the technical and sporting levels.

Like the Artistic World Championships in Nanning last year, the Glasgow Worlds were a great success and will go down as being among the best in our history.

1. Several different elements contributed to the quality organisation of this big event. The giant screen (a.k.a. the mega-wall), which broadcasted highlights and key moments; the individual introductions of the gymnasts, which made them the principal actors in this sporting spectacle as they took to the competition floor; and finally, the seating of the judges off the field of play.
2. From a technical point of view, the performances at these Worlds might be compared to what we saw in China in 2014. The results remained uncertain until the end of the Men’s All-around final, when Kohei Uchimura confirmed his status as the world’s best gymnast.
   
   The multiplicity of Federations represented among the finalists confirmed the progress made by numerous countries that strive to produce high level gymnasts.
   
   The high technical level contributed to maintaining the suspense down to the last routine in team and individual finals, rendering each competition captivating from beginning to end.
3. Judges rose to the occasion at these World Championships, delivering consistent and
   homogeneous scores throughout the event. This significant ethical achievement is the result of the policy of improving sports justice, which has been set out and pursued over the last several years.

It gave me real pleasure to see that seating the judges outside the competition zone was an excellent idea. When I initially proposed this to the members of the technical committees, the suggestion was subject to certain aggressive criticisms. In Glasgow, the scoring was the best and most balanced we've ever seen. This is not a personal affirmation, but the general opinion with the benefit of hindsight.

The other aspect concerns evolution on the technical level: an increasing number of athletes are able to perform outstanding difficulty with precise execution, enhancing the artistic side of our beautiful sport.

 

It remains, however, to deplore the large number of accidents that took place during these World Championships. It was the only negative point, and one we must find solutions for.

 

So could be summarised these World Championships, which we will keep fondly in our memories.

 

In conclusion, Glasgow’s SSE Hydro Arena, which served as the backdrop to this incredible competition, must be mentioned. It constituted a kind a temple dedicated to Gymnastics, offering perfect dimensions for this event, with the giant screen equipped for the optimal retransmission of results, replays and any promotional information.

 

This way of proceeding should serve as a reference for future competitions, as it allows us to show the ongoing battle in competition, which sometimes tends to go unnoticed in the absence of direct confrontation among athletes in our sport. The spectators must feel that they are part of it all, and be able to understand the rankings and where their favorite gymnast falls within them while the competition is going on. The public that fills the arena, as much as the viewers who watch it on TV, must be in a position to share in the thrill it provides.

 

Gymnastics events must attain this level of organisation in order to match the level offered by the performances of our athletes, assuring them the success they deserve.

 

Glasgow staged an outstanding show, as rich in emotion as it was in performance and organisation.

 

I would say that these World Championships mastered the complicated equation of organisation and sport, and fully lived up to the expectations of our time.

 

Thank you to the city of Glasgow, and thank you British Gymnastics.

 

On behalf of the Gymnastics family, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to the authorities of the city of Glasgow.