On 9 January 2024, the IWGA delegation led by President José Perurena, and Mr Gao Zhidan, China’s Sports Minister and Chinese Olympic Committee (COC) President, gathered in person in Beijing (CHN).
Minister Gao, who will co-preside The World Games 2025 Chengdu Local Organising Committee (LOC) together with Mr Huang Qiang, Governor of the Sichuan province, provided general updates on the overall progression of The World Games preparations to the delegation on site, and shared the latest plans related to a variety of organisational topics.
Minister Gao confirmed the readiness and enthusiasm of the city of Chengdu to welcome athletes to the 2025 edition of The World Games, and outlined the fantastic opportunity that it represents for China to further develop and promote the sports featured on TWG’s programme. The COC equally confirmed that it will actively support the promotion of the event in the lead up to 2025.
“Today we found out that preparations are going smoothly, and we are confident that Chengdu has the required experience in hosting global multi-sport events. In addition to China’s world-class hospitality alongside sporting excellence, the IWGA is fully committed to support and strengthen its close relationships with the participating International Federations, and to provide guidance in terms of technical preparation for the most successful edition of The World Games yet,” President Perurena said, echoing the excitement of the Chinese organisers for the upcoming Games.
The IWGA and the COC agreed to further increase collaboration in the near future by the possible signature of a Memorandum of Understanding to be concluded in the first half of 2024.
The IWGA delegation also met with Mr. Ma Zheng, Deputy Director of CMG (China Media Group) Sports and Children’s Programming Centre, at the headquarters of CCTV in Beijing, to discuss the collaboration for The World Games in the areas of production and distribution of images.
After the official meeting in the Chinese capital, the IWGA delegation headed south to Chengdu, in the Sichuan province, for a site visit of the Roller Sports, Squash and Racquetball venues. Near-completion of the Roller Sports site was reported, while additional work is needed on the other facilities.
The delegation met again with Governor Huang, Mayor of Chengdu Municipality, Mr Wang Fengchao and other key LOC senior executives to discuss the progress of preparation for The World Games 2025.
The IWGA representatives attended a community event organised by the LOC to engage with the youth of Chengdu, where both President Perurena and Governor Huang stressed the opportunity of using The World Games coming to Chengdu as a vector to promote physical activity and involve the local citizens.
“This landmark community event symbolises a significant milestone in the LOC’s dedication to promoting The World Games and sport in the region. Educating and raising awareness about sports in the local communities is of upmost importance. Today, we have witnessed that Chengdu is moving in the right direction,” Perurena said.
This event featured competitions and demonstrations of Softball, Flag Football and Flying Disc as well as cultural activities.
The official visit in China concluded on Thursday 11 January with a working-group meeting involving IWGA CEO Mr Joachim Gossow, IWGA Deputy CEO Mr Guillaume Felli and Ms. Zhang Ruiqin, Vice Director-General of TWG 2025. Operational matters, as well as planning of The World Games 2025 in areas of marketing, broadcasting, accommodation and media were the working group’s focus.
The 12th edition of The World Games will be held from 7-17 August 2025. The sports programme is available here.
The World Games is a multi-sport event staged every four years by the International World Games Association, organised with the support of the International Olympic Committee. The World Games 2022 was held in Birmingham, Alabama, USA, 7-17 July 2022. 3,600 athletes from 34 sports and 100 countries took part in the Games. The 12th edition of The World Games will be held in Chengdu, CHN, 7-17 August 2025.
