Merging Sports and Arts: European Athletics Championships Zürich 2014 to Feature both Top Athletes and Top Artists

The European Athletics Championships Zürich 2014 (12 to 17 August) will be a unique summer festival. On each day of competition, athletics top performances and show highlights will captivate the crowd at Letzigrund Stadium. National and international top artists, such as DJ Bobo, Sunrise Avenue, Eliana Burki, Marc Sway, and Freddy Nock will partake in the championship action.

The City Festival on Sechseläutenplatz (9 to 17 August) will offer numerous events and activities, including an art project involving three-dimensional video projections on the facade of the Zurich Opera House.

Renaud Lavillenie was the star guest at a Zürich 2014 media conference at Letzigrund Stadium. The pole vaulter is the new high flyer of the event after snatching the world record from the legendary Sergey Bubka by clearing 6.16m earlier this year. The French pole vaulter will no doubt be one of the most illustrious stars of the championships in Zurich.

„I look forward to the championships at Letzigrund Stadium. Zurich is an athletics city, famous for providing athletes with the best possible conditions, and also for celebrating our sport in a very special way,” explained the world record holder and reigning Olympic champion.

Lavillenie used his visit to Zurich to put the championship venue to the test. He trained in the stadium tunnel and tried out the new top-performance track system by CONICA. The Schaffhausen-based company will retop the Letzigrund track with the new surface this June. Extensive biomechanical tests have confirmed the benefits of the new surfacing system. After his training session, Lavillenie was the first championship participant to find out which show stars will be highlighting his and his fellow competitors’ performances during Zürich 2014.

Opening Ceremony with DJ Bobo, Freddy Nock, and Sunrise Avenue
The series of show highlights will start with the Opening Ceremony at the end of the first day of competition (Tuesday, 12 August). Stadium visitors will be enjoying a 30-minute multimedia show. „This form of merging music, artistry, and sport will be a first for Switzerland,” said Simon Ackermann, co-producer and director of the championship ceremonies at Letzigrund Stadium.

DJ Bobo, internationally known for his spectacular shows, will perform together with Cooly, and with tightrope artist Freddy Nock, who might try to challenge Renaud Lavillenie for his dominance of the Letzigrund Stadium skies. Sunrise Avenue, the popular rock band from Helsinki will build a bridge from the last host city of the European Athletics Championships to Zürich 2014.

„The shows during Opening Ceremony will all establish a link to sport in general and to athletics in particular,“ added Simon Ackermann. Many Swiss athletics legends (e.g. Anita Weyermann, Anita Protti, Werner Günthör, Markus Ryffel, and Viktor Röthlin), as well as hundreds of Zürich 2014 volunteers will partake in the ceremony, as well.

Shows featuring Swiss musicians to conclude each day of competition
Each day of competition will be concluded with a 10-minute multimedia show celebrating the performances of the athletes. Representatives of four different music genres will portray aspects of the multifaceted host country of the championships. Plasma, a newcomer electro rock band will be the ambassadors of Switzerland’s young generation. While Trauffer, a modern-day alpine musician, will be celebrating Zurich as the gateway to the Swiss Alps, pop musician and Zurich local Marc Sway will be pointing to the city’s multicultural side. Finally, DJ Tito Torres will pay tribute to the famous Street Parade.

With best wishes to Amsterdam
On Sunday, 17 August, a 45-minute Closing Ceremony will include the final five Victory Ceremonies, and will top off the six-day mega event. As many as seven musicians or bands will help celebrate the championships, and of course send Zürich 2014’s best wishes to the next host country of the European Athletics Championships: Netherlands (Amsterdam 2016). Swiss soul singer Caroline Chevin will perform a duet with her Dutch colleague Alain Clark. Famous alphorn blower Eliana Burki and 50 flag throwers will add a lot of ”swissness” to the evening. And Plasma, Trauffer, and Marc Sway will make Letzigrund Stadium rock again.  In addition, there will be a surprise guest performing in the star-studded Zürich 2014 Closing Ceremony.

All ceremonies at Letzigrund Stadium will be staged by 3Friends (Nadine Imboden, Simon Ackermann, and Max Sieber) and produced by Compresso, a well-known Zurich-based  agency.

City Festival: 3D video projections on the front facade of the Zurich Opera House
The championships will take place both at Letzigrund Stadium and at the Zurich city centre. Owing to the Canton of Zurich, residents and visitors will have the opportunity to experience an extraordinary art project on Sechseläutenplatz, the city’s most famous square. The governing council of the canton has approved a financial contribution from its lottery fund in order to provide the means for three-dimensional displays to be projected on to the front facade of the Zurich Opera House (two shows per evening, 10pm and 11.15pm).

12 creative agencies all over Europe had been invited to create concepts for the art project. Seven of them submitted their projects to a jury, which included Zurich Opera House Artistic Director Andreas Homoki, Zürich 2014 CEO Patrick K. Magyar, among others. The jury selected two winners, the Zurich agency Projektil and the Vienna light art team Lichttapete (in cooperation with the projection specialists of Pani Projection and Lighting), who will present their work in 17 projection shows.

„The two winning teams presented impressive visions, ingeniously combining athletics and art. Residents of the Zurich area and championship visitors will be enthralled by their truly spectacular and innovative shows. The projection shows, the House of Switzerland, and many activities and events will create a wonderful summer festival on Sechseläutenplatz,” explained Patrick K. Magyar.

Zürich 2014 preparations on course, tickets in high demand
With 81 days to go, Patrick K. Magyar was very pleased with how preparations for the championships were progressing. “There is still a lot to be done, of course. One of our tasks for the weeks to come will be to finalize the authorization procedures for all our activities. But we are working closely with our partners and with authorities. Therefore, we are on course with all our preparations, and we will be ready to stage wonderful championships.”

The Zürich 2014 promoters are particularly pleased with ticket sales so far. 45 per cent, or 54’405 tickets, have already been sold. More than a third of all tickets were purchased by international fans. “The huge demand for tickets shows that our ticket packages, which include public transport fares, are attractive for championship visitors.  The cast of show stars we announced today is yet another aspect of the championships that will help provide fans with a truly unforgettable sports event,“ Patrick K Magyar explained.

Creating great interest: Zürich 2014 cooperates with 37 partners
The championships have also created great interest among potential sponsoring partners. At the media conference of today, promoters announced 10 new official national suppliers, including APG, Brack.ch, Chicco d’Oro, Conceptum Sport Logistics, Condecta, Hunziker, Klinik Hirslanden / Medbase, Provins, Riedel, and Zürcher Wein. All in all, Zürich 2014 can count on the support of 37 sponsors.  SPAR, Omega, Le Gruyère AOP, Eurovsion, and UBS are Zürich 2014 official international partners. 

Artists at the European Athletics Championships Zürich 2014:
•    Tuesday, 12 August: Opening ceremony with DJ Bobo, Freddy Nock, and Sunrise Avenue
•    Wednesday, 13 August: Plasma (theme: Young Switzerland)
•    Thursday, 14 August: Trauffer (theme: Zurich – the Gateway to the Swiss Alps)
•    Friday, 15 August: Marc Sway (theme: Multicultural Zurich)
•    Saturday, 16 August: DJ Tito Torres (theme : Tribute to the Street Parade)
•    Sunday, 17 August: Closing ceremony with Eliana Burki, Plasma, Trauffer, Marc Sway, Caroline Chevin, Alain Clark, 50 flag throwers, and a surprise guest.

 

Janine Geigele