For the second year in a row, the Hellenic Gymnastics Federation welcomed to the city of Thessaloniki young gymnasts and coaches from all over Europe, who will participate in the annual European Gymnastics Training Camp in Men’s Artistic Gymnastics and will spend a total of ten days on Greek soil, from June 27th to July 6th.
The event, which continues a long and successful tradition of more than three decades, offers to young gymnasts aged 13 to 16 and their coaches a unique opportunity of training, learning and becoming friends to colleagues from all over the continent. This is the second time that Thessaloniki plays host of the European camp, which had been based in Tirrenia, Italy before switching to Greece last year.
The main focus will be on the “Ioannis Melissanidis” Sports Hall, within the Mikra National Sports Center facilities, as the program of the camp includes training sessions under the supervision of the European Gymnastics experts, high-level academic and practical lectures for the coaches, but also cultural and leisure activities outside the gym, such as visits to nearby beaches and to the main Thessaloniki landmarks, in order for all participants to get to know Greece better and leave with the best impressions.
A total of 22 male gymnasts born between 2006 and 2009, along with 23 accompanying coaches, representing 14 European countries (Armenia, Croatia, Finland, France, Georgia, Hungary, Italy, Kosovo, Norway, Netherlands, Poland, Slovakia, Switzerland and Greece) and also Australia will be attending the training camp this year.
The participants were welcomed by mr. Avraam Sapranidis, 2nd Vice-President of the Hellenic Gymnastics Federation and President of the national artistic gymnastics TC, who has been assigned by the hosts as general coordinator at the Thessaloniki camp, mr. Kostas Pantazis, General Secretary of the Hellenic Gymnastics Federation, and mr. Nikos Provias, member of the Hellenic Federation Board and member of European Gymnastics MAG-TC.
Nine renowned artistic gymnastics experts from various countries have been selected to share their knowledge and expertise with the promising gymnasts and their coaches. Alekos Ioakimidis, former coach of Greek Olympic champions Dimosthenis Tampakos and Vasilios Tsolakidis, will be among these experts, who will give their insight during the next days at “Ioannis Melissanidis” Sports Hall and pass the torch to the next generation of European gymnastics.
Photos of the first day of the 2022 European Gymnastics Training Camp in Men’s Artistic Gymnastics:
