The 2019 World Para Dance Sport Championships are coming to the home of the Paralympic Movement in Bonn, Germany. From 29 November – 1 December, more than 210 athletes from 20 countries will light up the dance floor in the former German capital.
It will be the first major Para sporting event hosted in Bonn, the headquarters of the International Paralympic Committee (IPC).
Ashok Sridharan, Lord Mayor of Bonn, said: "We are proud that Bonn is the home of the Paralympic Movement, and are excited to welcome the city’s first Para sport World Championships in November.
"Dance and sport have the power to bring joy to our lives and ‘Joy’ is the motto of Bonn. We will welcome athletes from the whole world in a celebration of sport, joy and inclusion in Bonn at the World Para Dance Sport Championships."
The World Championships will be organised by World Para Dance Sport, the sport’s international federation, with the support of the City of Bonn.
The competition will take place at the Hardberghalle.
Camila Rodrigues, World Para Dance Sport Manager, said: "We are excited that our sport will be the first Para sport World Championships to take place in Bonn, our own backyard. We see the potential the sport can bring to the city, and what the city can bring to Para dance.
"We look forward to working with the City of Bonn to make a memorable competition for the athletes and share our passion with the city."
The fifth edition of the Worlds took place in 2017 in Malle, Belgium, and made history as the biggest competition yet. Around 170 athletes from 22 countries competed for medals in 18 events, with Ukrainian dancers topping the podium nine times.
The 2015 Worlds in Rome, Italy, attracted 150 dancers from 25 countries. Featuring singles and singles freestyle events for the first time, stand out performances in the couples events came from Philippines’ Rhea Marquez and Jun Julius Obero in the combi freestyle class 2.
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Notes to the Editor
The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) is the global governing body of the Paralympic Movement.
The IPC supervises the organisation of the Summer and Winter Paralympic Games, and serves as the International Federation for ten sports, for which it oversees and co-ordinates the World Championships and other competitions, including World Para Dance Sport.
The IPC is committed to enabling Paralympic athletes to achieve sporting excellence and to developing sport opportunities for all persons with an impairment from the beginner to the high performance level. In addition, the IPC aims to promote the Paralympic values, which include courage, determination, inspiration and equality.
For further information, please contact Rafael Maranhao, IPC Public Relations Senior Manager on e-mail: rafael.maranhao@paralympic.org. Alternatively, please visit www.worldparadancesport.com or www.ParalympicSport.TV.
You can also follow World Para Dance Sport on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram: www.twitter.com/paradancesport, www.facebook.com/ParaDanceSport and @paradancesport.
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