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van
Esser:
Just like the very first gymnastics World Championships in history
in 1903 in Antwerp, we are starting this millennium with a World
Championship on Belgian ground, which is incentive and duty at
the same time. You have already had the opportunity to make yourself
a picture of the expected conditions in the “Topsporthal
Vlanderen“. Not only the conditions of the surroundings
but also the arena itself will be in an excellent state. At the
moment there is still a big athletics-area inside. For the about
5000 spectators per event a round tribune will be erected, so
that they are close to the apparatuses and the gymnasts. That
grants best view from all the places.
At
the moment the ticket-sale is running and e.g. there are only
1000 tickets left for the women’s all-around-final! We are assuming
that we will have a sold out event. There are already many reservations
from the Netherlands and the USA. Therefore my advice for all
those who are interested-in Germany as well- reserve tickets as
fast as possible, you know that the early bird...!
Right
know our VTL-team is focusing on a solution to the logistic problems...
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Today:
Track and field Arena
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...What are your priorities
there?
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The venue of WCh 2001: Topsporthal Vlanderen
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van
Esser: Ghent
is a cultural and architectural jewel, primarily because of its
historical town centre, but at the moment we are lacking a really
big hotel. Unfortunately that will be erected next year only,
right beside the “Topsporthal Vlanderen“ and sports as well as
many events will benefit from it. Therefore we will have to distribute
our guests on several small hotels. Large-scale transports will
result from that, which we will have to organise-and will organise:
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From
the hotel to the daily training on the exhibition area of the Flanders
Expo for example or to the competition gym itself and back. But problems
of that kind we are used to solve.
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Training hall, Flanders Expo
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Although
we are a quite young gymnastics federation, we successfully organised
the World cup in Bruxelles in 1990, the RG-World Championships
in 1992, the Europe-Cup final in 1993 and the acrobatics World
Championships in 1999 here in Gent, not to forget the GYM-Gala
every two years-with all the Olympic stars and over 10.000
spectators the last time in Antwerp.
Beside the preparations
for the World Championships we could see that you are pointing
other ways as well...! |
van
Esser: Yes,
the World Championships are means to an end for us, too: We are erecting
the largest gymnastics centre of the Benelux-states, with corresponding
facilities of course, like a boarding school for example. The equipment
comes from the „Official World-Championships-supplier“, the company „Janssen&Fritsen“,
that grants quality in the first place ! Furthermore we are
going to work with 8 full-time coaches from September on. Next year a
“House of Sports“ will be erected in addition to the Sport Hotel and the
entire centre, where the Vlaamse Turnliga will reside.
Our goal is to develop gymnastics in Flanders and adjust it to the world’s
top level. We want to establish Flanders as a location of international gymnastics! We
are gaining great support from the province East-Flanders, the town of
Gent and the Flemish ministry of sports BLOSO, all partners of the approaching
World Championships.
In which temporal dimensions
do you see your goals?
van
Esser: One year ago we started with women’s gymnastics.
Dominique Verlent works there
as a coach with talented
kids in between the ages of 10 and 12. Maybe one of the girls will be
in Athens in 2004 already. For example Angje
van Walleghem could be capable of that, she should be able to win
the Belgian Junior Championships in Charleroi next week. As for the boys
I like the 17-year-old Martin Callewaerts.
But first of all it is important to make our methods professional
in serious sports.
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What does the technical
director comment on the financial situation before the World Championships?
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Esser:
Name one head of an organising committee who says:
I have enough money…! But we will get everything done.
Great advantages are the resolutions
of the first FIG-councils, which are more moderate
for media and public and we feel that they will come to
effect in Ghent for the first time. Without parallel gymnastics
such a competition is much easier to broadcast, the warming-up
does not disturb the order, as it will take place in the
attractive warming-up gym. Take the GYMfinal that will
take place here in Ghent in May: After the Belgian all-around-Championships
of all disciplines only the two best gymnasts per discipline
of gymnastics, RSG, acrobatics and trampoline will start
there and compete for winner at the corresponding apparatus:
Right away the TV shows up with broadcasting equipment
and 5 cameras…we have to go new ways, then we get spectators,
the TV and sponsors. |
Good for TV:
Belgian GYMfinal: Only the two best gymnasts will fighting
for the titles
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Mr.
van Esser, we wish your Championships-team success in the last months
before the World Championships and are looking forward to the first World
Championships of the new millennium in Ghent!
(Reporting
from Ghent by
Eckhard Herholz
GYMmedia Berlin
Translation: Janka Schmeisser, GYMmedia)
GYMmedia visited also the coming neuw
Vlaamse Gymnastics Center, which will be opened
in June and will be the official Warming up Hall of the World Championships.
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-NAVIGATION