Liverpool’s Echo Arena will host the Artistic Gymnastics World Championships in 2022, it was announced today (Monday).
The International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) made the announcement following its Council meeting in Istanbul, Turkey.
The multi-purpose Echo Arena, which has staged an array of sports and music events since opening in 2008, will host the World Championships from October 28 to November 6, 2022.
The event is held annually, with the exception of Olympic years. Before Liverpool hosts in 2022, the event will be held in Doha, Qatar (2018), Stuttgart, Germany (2019) and Copenhagen, Denmark (2021). Montreal in Canada hosted last year’s event.
The event last took place in the UK back in 2015, when the SSE Hydro in Glasgow, Scotland played host. The Echo Arena has been hosting the British Championships since 2012.
“The Glasgow Worlds became, for the FIG, a reference point for the staging of gymnastics,” FIG president Morinari Watanabe said. “The bid that British Gymnastics presented us is promising another great event in a city with a real love for the sport, and this is something for us to celebrate.”
British Gymnastics chief executive Jane Allen added: “We are delighted Liverpool has been selected to host the 2022 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships. What an exciting year it’s going to be with the 2022 Commonwealth Games also taking place on home soil (in Birmingham). The World Championships should be a qualifying event for the 2024 Olympic Games so expect to see the World’s absolute best at Liverpool 2022 including many international Olympic stars.”
Image: Keith Edkins
