The official website of the FIG recently confirmed officially three new World Cup events to be held in 2008, in addition to the World Cups previously confirmed. Overall, at least eight or nine World Cups, including the World Cup Final, will take place in 2008.
The first newly confirmed World Cup is scheduled for March 7-8, 2008, in Wroclaw, Poland. The event will be a Category A World Cup in trampoline and a Category B World Cup in tumbling. Wroclaw has held an international competition called the Wroclaw Cup the past two years with great success.
This 2008 Wroclaw World Cup will be the third time that Poland will host a trampoline World Cup. The first occasion occurred in March 1998 in Poznan where Evgeni Beliaev (BLR) and Irina Karavaeva (RUS) prevailed. The last trampoline World Cup held in Poland took place in Zielona Gora in September 2007 and was won by Lu Chunlong (CHN) and Irina Karavaeva (RUS). A tumbling only World Cup was also held in November 1996 in Swidnica. Poznan also hosted the 1991 European Championships won by Alexander Moskalenko (RUS) and Andrea Holmes (GBR) in trampoline.
The city of Osaka in Japan will host another newly confirmed trampoline World Cup on May 16-17, 2008. The competition will apparently feature only a trampoline competition. The event will be a category B World Cup. The World Cup will actually take place at the Himawari (Sunflower) Dome in Kumatori, just South of Osaka.
This Osaka World Cup will be the first World Cup competition ever held in Japan. Despite never hosting a World Cup, Japan has hosted major international trampoline events in the past. The most memorable was probably the 1984 World Championships in Osaka, which was won by Lionel Pioline (FRA) and Susan Shotton-Challis (GBR). The city of Akita, Japan, also hosted the 2001 World Games.
The third newly confirmed World Cup will take place in Arosa, Switzerland, on June 20-21, 2008. The competition will feature apparently only a trampoline competition. It will be a Category A World Cup. The event will take place in connection with the 45th Nissen Cup, the longest running international competition.
This 2008 Arosa World Cup will be the sixth time that Switzerland will host a World Cup. Previously, World Cups had been held in St Moritz in August 1992, won by Viacheslav Morozov (BLR) and Anna Dogonadze (GEO), in St Moritz again in August 1994, won by Fabrice Schwertz (FRA) and Andrea Holmes (GBR), in Vevey in August 1998, won by Emmanuel Durand (FRA) and Irina Karavaeva (RUS), in Savognin in July 2004, won by Yuri Nikitin (UKR) and Karen Cockburn (CAN), and in Savognin again in August 2006, won by Yasuhiro Ueyama (JPN) and Huang Shanshan (CHN).
So far, 9 World Cups have been confirmed for 2008:
- In Wroclaw, Poland, on March 7-8, 2008 (Category A in trampoline - Category B in tumbling)
- In Ghent, Belgium, on April 25-26, 2008 (Category A in trampoline - Category B in tumbling)
- In Osaka, Japan, on May 16-17, 2008 (Category B in trampoline)
- In Publier, France, on May 23-24, 2008 (Category A in trampoline - Category A in tumbling - Category B in acrobatic gymnastics)
- In Arosa, Switzerland, on June 20-21, 2008 (Category A in trampoline)
- in Albacete, Spain, on June 27-28, 2008 (Category B in trampoline)
- In Togliatti, Russia, on September 17-21, 2008 (presumably Category B in trampoline and tumbling)
- In Loule, Portugal, on September 26-27, 2008 (Category A in trampoline and tumbling)
- World Cup Final, in a city to be determined, in November 2008.
It should be noted that the FIG calendar has not officially reported the Togliatti World Cup yet. However, the websites of the British and German gymnastics federations have reported it. A request was put to the FIG to upgrade the Albacete World Cup to a Category A World Cup.
Other major international events for 2008 include:
- the Pacific Alliance Championships in San Jose, United States, on March 28-30, 2008,
- the European Championships in Odense, Denmark, on April 28-May 03, 2008,
- the Olympic Games in Beijing, China, on August 08-24, 2008,
- the Indo-Pacific Championships in Roturua, New Zealand, in mid-late October 2008,
- the World Games test in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, on November 1-2, 2008, and
- the African Championships, in Morocco, in November 2008.
AcrobaticSports.com would like to thank Konrad Bojakowski and Miguel Vicente for their help.
Link to the Wroclaw World Cup invitation
Link to the Ghent World Cup invitation
Link to the Osaka World Cup invitation
Link to the Publier World Cup invitation
Link to the Arosa World Cup invitation
Link to the Albacete World Cup invitation
Link to the Loule World Cup invitation
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