TALL SHIPS CHALLENGE

The TALL SHIPS CHALLENGE® is an annual event organized by Tall Ships America alternating in a three year cycle between the Great Lakes, the Pacific and the Atlantic coasts of North America.

The event attracts hundreds of thousands of people to witness beautiful and tall ships from the age of sailing and offers a unique opportunity for participants to interact with the crews of different ships in friendly rivalry as they run from port to port.

The series began in 2001 in the Great Lakes and saw ships from six countries and visited seven US and Canadian ports. Since its launch, the TALL SHIPS CHALLENGE® series has visited dozens of North American cities, bringing millions of spectators to the coast to experience the tall ships and create a cumulative economic impact of hundreds of millions of dollars for host communities. It has continued to grow each year and is an impatiently anticipated event in the beach communities receiving vessels (see, for example, Philadelphia's Summer Sail 2007) and beyond.

Each year, the TALL SHIPS CHALLENGE® series is designated a Marine Event of National Importance by the United States Coast Guard.

Tall Ships US summer interns hold a blog about their experiences called the official Blog of the Tall Ships Challenge series

Mountain Climbing

The term "mountaineering" describes the sport of mountaineering, including ski mountaineering. Hiking in the mountains can also be a simple form of mountaineering when it comes to crawling, or short stretches of the more basic classes of climbing, as well as cross glaciers.

While the mountaineering began as an attempt to reach the highest point of the unspoilt vast mountains, it has branched into specializations that address different aspects of the mountain and consists of three (3) areas: rock boating, snow skiing and skiing, depending on whether the Route is selected over rock, snow or ice. All require experience, athletic ability and technical knowledge to maintain safety.

Mountaineering is often referred to as alpinism, especially in European languages, which means climbing with difficulties so high, and often snow and ice covered mountains like the Alps. A mountaineer with such great dexterity is called an alpinist. The word Alpinism was born in the 19th century to refer to climbing to enjoy climbing itself as a sport or recreation, in contrast to mere climbing during the hunt or as a religious pilgrimage, which had been made at that time.

The UIAA or the Union International of the Association of Alpinism is the world government in mountaineering and climbing, dealing with topics such as Access, Medicine, Mountain Protection, Security, Youth and Ice Climbing

Historically, many cultures have had awe-inspiring mountains, which they often regarded as sacred because of their proximity to heaven, like the Olymp for the ancient Greeks.

In 1492, Antoine de Ville, lord of Domjulien and Beaupré, the first, the Mont Aiguille, was in France, with a small team, with ladders and ropes to ascend. It seems the first recorded climb of any technical difficulty, and was said to mark the beginning of the mountaineering.

In 1573 Francesco de Marchi and Francesco Di Domenico rose Corno Grande, the highest peak in the Apennine Mountains. During the Enlightenment, as a product of the new spirit of curiosity for the natural world, many mountain peaks were overcome for the first time. Richard Pococke and William Windham made a historic visit to Chamonix in 1741. In 1760, the Swiss scientist Horace-Bénédict de Saussure offered a reward for the first person to climb Mont Blanc,

In the early 19th century, many of the Alpine peaks were reached; The Großglockner in 1800, the Ortler in 1804, the Virgin in 1811, the Finsteraarhorn in 1812 and the Breithorn in 1813.

Sports Acrobatics - Acrobatic Gymnastics

Acrobatic gymnastics (formerly known as sports acrobatics) is a competitive gymnastic discipline, in which partnerships of gymnasts work together and perform figures from acrobatic movements, dance and drumming based on music. There are three types of routines; An "equilibrium" routine where focus is on strength, balance and flexibility; A "dynamic" routine that involves throwing, somersaults, and catches, and (at level 6 and above) a "combined" routine that contains elements of balance and dynamics.

The sport is led by the International Federation of Gymnastics (FIG). At international level, there are four categories of competition according to age; 11-16, 12-18, 13-19, and 15+ (senior).

Acrobatic gymnasts lead to couples or groups and enter into a certain or age group. In each partnership, the different sizes and abilities of the gymnasts are balanced to complement each other to perform the complex movements. Some are mainly supportive and pitching roles, and are known as bases. They are then balanced with smaller gymnasts, which become the 'tops'. The various partnerships in the competition are:

    Women couple (two women)
    Men's Couple (two men)
    Mixed couple (a male base and a female top)
    Women's group (three women)
    Men's group (four men)

In the competition, partnerships lead a routine to the music, which is usually specially choreographed for them. The gymnasts perform their acrobatic movements and combine them with dance, all in time and in accordance with the style of the music. Partnerships are judged on skill, difficulty of skills and skills.

The rules for sport, known as the Code of Points, are governed by the Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique. These rules change every four years in line with the Olympic cycle, as in other disciplines gymnastics.

Acrobatic gymnastics events are part of the World Games and are also among the first European games, as well as their own acrobatic gymnastics world championship which takes place in straight years (known as World Sports Acrobatics Championships before 2006), as well as in the continental or regional area championships in odd years . For example, the European Acrobatic Championships take place in Lisbon, Portugal in October 2013.

There are also numerous national, state and regional competitions taking place in every country. Local and regional competitions often form the qualification stages for participating in national championships. There is no requirement of the figure for Turner to have qualified through their own national championships to compete internationally but local government will often make their national team selection based on performance at national competition.

Acrobatic gymnastics events often attract large audiences because they are very entertaining, exciting and exciting because of the view of being risky or boldly moved. At the Olympic Games in London in 2012 acrobatic partnerships were shown before the Olympic tournaments and at the opening and closing ceremonies. It was said that its appearance, although not an Olympic discipline, is a testament to its ability to entertain.

Gold, silver and bronze medals are usually awarded in the usual way; Although in some competitions, a minimum score is required to qualify for medals

IHF International Handball Federation

The International Handball Federation (IHF) is the administrative and control body for handball, beach handball, wheelchair handball and snowball. IHF has 204 national affiliates.

The IHF was founded on 11 July 1946 in Copenhagen (Denmark) by representatives of eight national associations. The founding members are Denmark, Finland, France, Norway, the Netherlands, Poland, Sweden and Switzerland. In 1954, the first IHF Men's World Cup was conducted under the direction of the IHF in Sweden with the participation of six national teams. In 1957, the first IHF Women's Handball European Championship was held in Yugoslavia with 9 national teams. For the first time in the Olympics, they have seen a handball tournament from Munich 1972 (men's tournament) and Montreal 1976 (women's tournament).

The IHF is made up of five continental associations every two years: the Asian handball federation, the African handball team, the Panamerican handball team, the European handball federation and the Oceanic Handball Federation. In addition to the continental contests between national teams, the associations organize international tournaments between club teams

IHF Tournaments World Championship

    IHF World Championship
    IHF Emerging Nations Championship
    IHF World Championship
    IHF Men's World Junior Championship
    IHF Women's Junior World Championship
    IHF Men's Youth World Championship
    IHF Women's World Championship
    IHF Inter-Continental Trophy

IFBB International Federation of Bodybuilding and Fitness

The International Federation of Bodybuilding and Fitness (IFBB), based in Madrid, is an international professional sports body for bodybuilding and fitness, which monitors many of the international sporting events, in particular the World and Continental Championships

In 1946 the IFBB was founded by the brothers Ben and Joe Weider in Montreal, Canada under the name "International Federation of Bodybuilders". The two founding countries were Canada and the United States. Mr. Ben Weider from Canada was the first IFBB president. In 1965 the IFBB Mr. Olympia, the first IFBB competition, was held. From 1946 to 1970, the Federation experienced rapid growth as Joe and Ben Weider promoted bong tires. Until 1970 the IFBB had directors in more than 50 countries worldwide and the IFBB had its presence in Africa, Asia, Europe, Australia, North America and South America.

On 4 September 1970 the IFBB held its 1st International Congress in Belgrade, Yugoslavia, where a constitution was passed, and an executive council. In 1971 the IFBB became a member of the General Association of International Sports Associations (GAISF), now SportAccord. After receiving the membership, the IFBB was the only official representative of bodybuilding recognized by world sports authorities. From the 80s to his death in 2008, IFBB President Ben Weider petitioned the IOC for the inclusion of bodybuilding in the Olympic Games. Although bodybuilding had never been on the Olympic program, the IOC granted the IFBB's provisional recognition in 1998, which lasted nearly four years but was withdrawn in 2001.

In 2004, the IFBB was renamed to the International Federation of Bodybuilding and Fitness and claimed the abbreviation "IFBB". In the following year, the IFBB adopted new IFBB anti-doping rules according to the World Anti-Doping Code. The IFBB Professional Section was legally separated from the IFBB to form the IFBB Professional League, its own legal entity with its own rules and regulations. In return, the IFBB Constitution becomes a government document for amateur sports. In 2006, after 60 years, Ben Weider announced his role as president and Dr. Rafael Santonja from Spain was elected as new president. The IFBB headquarters were relocated to Madrid, Spain. In 2010, Santonja was re-elected for a second term, and in 2014 he was re-elected for the third time at the IFBB World Cup in Brasilia.