Press Release: Special
Olympians to Compete in
Hinckley Springs St. Valentine’s Classic
Gymnastics Meet
Event: Hinckley Springs St. Valentine’s Classic
Gymnastics Meet
Date: February 2, 3, 2008, Location: Forest View High School, 2121
Goebbert Rd. Arlington Heights, IL
Special
Olympians to Compete in
Hinckley Springs St. Valentine’s Classic Gymnastics
Meet
The Super Bowl may be on the minds of many area
athletes this weekend, but some very dedicated Special Olympians
have been working for months to prepare for another kind of competition.
Nearly 60 area Special Olympics gymnasts will
compete in the 27th Annual Hinckley Springs
St. Valentine’s Classic gymnastics
meet hosted by Mundelein’s Gymnastics Spot. Sunday afternoon,
athletes ages 10 to 22 will compete alongside Marc
Janovics, the well known
Special Olympian from Elk Grove. Marc returned from the Summer
World Special Olympics in Shanghai, China
as the Silver All Around Medalist.
“Marc is an inspiration to all of us and we are
thrilled to have him return to this competition, where he serves
as a role model to the younger athletes,” said Norbert Bendixen,
meet host and President of the Gymnastics Spot.
Saturday, Boys’ and Girls’ Advanced Level gymnastics
teams from 43 clubs and as far away as Minnesota
will perform in front of certified USAG judges
and the estimated 4000 spectators, who come
to cheer them on each year. Over
the past three decades, nearly 26,000 gymnasts
have participated in this competition.
The
Gymnastics Spot 915 Tower Road, Mundelein, IL 60060 phone
(847)949-SPOT (7768)
Chicago 2016 and City of Chicago Host Beijing
Olympic Sculpture Exhibit
Exhibition on Display Oct. 23-Nov. 3 at Navy Pier’s Gateway Park
Beginning today, Gateway Park at Chicago’s
Navy Pier will play host to the 2008 Beijing
Olympic Landscape Sculpture Exhibition. Models of the top 110 sculptures
were cast in bronze, iron, aluminum, stainless steel and other raw
materials and approximately 80 will be on view Oct. 23 through Nov.
3. The outdoor exhibition, which is free to the public, is a messenger
of the Olympic spirit.
Inspired by the immortal sculptures of ancient Athens, the Beijing
Organizing Committee for the Games of the XXIX Olympiad (BOCOG) organized
an international competition in 2005. On Aug. 8, 2005, artists from
around the world were invited to submit their sculpture designs depicting
some aspect of the Olympic Games or the Olympic Movement. More than
2,000 entries from over 80 countries were received and in 2006 a panel
of judges narrowed the submitted sculpture designs to 110 finalists,
including 10 designs submitted by American artists.
Today at 12 p.m., an opening ceremony unveiling the exhibition will
take place at Gateway Park and will feature a line and dragon dance,
red ribbon cutting ceremony and remarks from Maggie Daley, the first
lady of the City of Chicago, the Consul General of China, and representatives
from BOCOG and the U.S. Olympic Committee.
Sponsored by BOCOG, the exhibition aims to bring the essence of Olympic
spirit to the world by presenting a wide range of Olympic-inspired
works of art. The exhibition began traveling around the world in mid-2006
and first arrived in the United States in July 2007. Cities the exhibition
has been on display include: Barcelona, Spain; London, England; Sydney,
Australia; Seoul, South Korea; Rome, Italy; Lausanne, Switzerland
and Los Angeles, Calif., USA. It is also slated to travel to New York
City later this year.
The exhibition will be on display in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square during
the Olympic Games, which take place Aug. 8-24, 2008. Following the
conclusion of the Olympic Games, 29 sculptures symbolizing the XXIX
Olympiad will be awarded gold, silver and bronze medals. The winning
sculptures will become a part of the urban landscape in Beijing to
commemorate the Olympic Games.
