Olympians Beth Tweddle MBE and Max Whitlock MBE have been confirmed as ambassadors for the FIG World Gymnastics Championships 2022.
The world-class gymnasts will support the tournament, which will be held in Liverpool next year and will be one of the largest international sporting events ever to be held in the city.
A total of 550 gymnasts from 75 countries will compete in the global event at the M&S Bank Arena, which takes place from October 29 until November 6 2022.
As Britain’s greatest ever female gymnast, Tweddle is an Olympic bronze medallist, triple World Champion, six-time European Champion and Commonwealth Champion.
She said:
“I trained in Liverpool my whole gymnastics career and proudly called the city my home. I can’t put into words how excited I am that we’ll be hosting the World Gymnastics Championships in 2022 and I’m honoured to be an ambassador. Liverpool has a strong and proud sporting heritage and I know we’ll deliver a memorable championships for all involved.”
Double Olympic medallist and triple world champion Whitlock is Britain’s greatest ever gymnast. He said:
“I’m immensely proud to be an ambassador for this event which is one of the most significant championships on the gymnastics calendar.
“I competed at the M&S Bank Arena in the National Championships in 2016. The atmosphere was incredible, and the crowd was amazing – to be now hosting the World Championships in the city is fantastic.”
The Federation of International Gymnastics (FIG) awarded the Championships to Liverpool following a combined bid between British Gymnastics, Liverpool City Council and UK Sport. It will be the fourth time the event has been held in the UK.
Wendy Simon, acting mayor of Liverpool, said:
“We are honoured to have secured two of the world’s most successful gymnasts as ambassadors for the World Gymnastics Championships 2022.
“Beth’s top-flight career flourished in Liverpool. She has been integral to a number of significant bids to bring world class sporting events to the city and she is hugely proud to be able to support this major global event. Both she and Max are fantastic advocates and role models for the sport and we are pleased to have them both on board for what promises to be a spectacular tournament.”
M&S Bank Arena has staged the British Gymnastics Championships regularly since 2011. It has hosted a number of world class sporting events including the Vitality Netball World Cup in 2019 and is one of the host venues for the Rugby League World Cup due to take place later this year.
