The President's Note N° 10 - October 2024

Dear Gymnastics Family,

In early September the member Federations of European Gymnastics met to prepare the upcoming 85^th FIG Congress in Doha (QAT) from 24 to 26  October. On September 4, we all gathered together in Budapest (HUN) to discuss the elections to be held within the framework of the forthcoming Congress. I am very grateful to the officials of the 43 countries who could attend the meeting and share their valuable thoughts. The representatives of the remaining 7 countries also highly appreciated the meeting while they were not able to present due to certain circumstances.

There were brisk discussions at the meeting indeed. It was very interesting to listen to the speeches of the candidates which resulted in efficient deliberations. With every meeting hosted, we advance to the next level of understanding and joint work between the Federations. At the end of the meeting, everybody expressed their wish to continue meetings of this kind. Besides, these meetings help us to concentrate on certain topics and discuss the problems we are facing today and how the prospectively elected members of the FIG Executive Committee would be able to solve these issues for the sake of the future of Gymnastics.

Following the Federations meeting, we held our Presidential Board and Executive Committee meetings. We approved the Medical Regulations for 2024 and Technical Regulations for 2025, allocated the Europeans in Aerobic Gymnastics & TeamGym, and announced a call for hosts for several European Gymnastics events in 2026 and 2027.

The second half of September put the spotlight on three non-Olympic disciplines. Guimaraes (POR) opened its doors for the World Age Group Competitions and World Championships in Acrobatic Gymnastics while Pesaro (ITA) embraced the Worlds in Aerobic Gymnastics. I must add that all events were hosted at a high level, with top gymnasts from around the world putting on fantastic competitions.

At the same time, European Gymnastics and the Bulgarian Rhythmic Gymnastics Federation organised the magnificent Golden Age Gym Festival, from 22 to 27 September, in the beautiful Black Sea resort Burgas.  Close to 1500 participants from 19 countries plunged into the magic of Gymnastics for All, participating in a vast array of workshops, making new friends, showing their skills in the City Performances, going on excursions and dancing the night away during the social activities.

All three hosts, being greatly experienced, delivered high-level events this autumn. I congratulate the Organisers, medallists and all the participants with another three events showcasing the power and beauty of our sport. 

In October we are looking forward to witnessing the last Europeans of the year, the 15^th TeamGym European Championships which will take place from 16 to 19 October in Baku (AZE). TeamGym is the discipline in which we see progression and growth each year, and these Championships are proving to be spectacular, once again.

Another major event in October is the FIG Congress and the elections. I wish all the candidates from different parts of the world success. I am confident that our colleagues will elect the candidates who are suited best for the job with qualifications and experience to match the positions they would lead.

As many of you know I have also put forward my candidature for President of the FIG. Since the last elections I believed it to be my duty to do my best for the benefit of our sport. There are areas that I believe require considerable attention and improvement for gymnastics, and it is imperative that they are addressed if we want to see the future of this sport on the global scale. We deserve to be at a higher level, and we must keep developing the commercial side of sport, its presentation and of course the recognition of our athletes in the world arena. They are our stars that will inspire the up-and-coming generations, that is why they deserve all that we can invest for their development.

We are all people from Gymnastics. No matter where we are, our aim is one and every decision we make is for the bright future of our sport.  

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With my warmest compliments

Dr. Farid Gayibov

European Gymnastics President