Edinburgh to Host 2010 Archery World Cup Final

  Elayne McLEAN, Kate MURRAY and Susan MAITLAND   
  The World Cup Final, which will take place over the weekend of 17–18 September 2010 in East Princes Street Gardens, in the centre of the city below the Castle and the National Gallery of Scotland (view location). The competition will be free to view and is expected to attract thousands of spectators. There will also a series of ‘come and try’ events to encourage participation in the sport.   The City of Edinburgh Council, EventScotland, UK Sport, ArcheryGB and the Scottish Archery Association have all been involved in discussions with FITA, the world governing body for archery, to bring the event to Edinburgh, and the UK, for the first time.   This tournament is the culmination of four World Cup qualifying stages hosted in Porec (CRO), Antalya (TUR), Ogden (USA) and Shanghai (CHN) during 2010. The Final will feature the top 32 archers in the world and will be televised and broadcast internationally.   Cllr CARDOWNIE said: “Edinburgh is delighted to be the first British city to host the Archery World Cup Final. The City has an excellent track record of hosting world class events and this is no exception. The spectacular setting of East Princes Street Gardens is a fitting arena for such a prestigious tournament and I am sure that the people of Edinburgh and visitors to the City will get right behind it. Cllr CARDOWNIE added that “As well as encouraging participation in sporting activity, major televised sports events such as these provide an excellent opportunity for Edinburgh to showcase its spectacular city centre attractions to a global audience.”   Paul BUSH OBE, Chief Operating Officer at EventScotland, the national events agency, said: “Bringing the final stage of the 2010 Archery World Cup to Scotland is an extremely exciting prospect. This will be a world class event with Olympic standard archers and Edinburgh will provide an iconic backdrop for the action. Being staged right at the heart of the city in Princes Gardens will also expose a whole new audience to the sport and come and try sessions will ensure spectators can really get involved. This is a fantastic win for Edinburgh and, indeed, for Scotland.”   Prof Dr Ugur ERDENER, FITA President, said: “The Finals are reserved for extraordinary cities with extraordinary venues and the natural setting of the event in Edinburgh certainly fits that description. We are looking forward to what promises to be another great Archery World Cup Final, in line with the spectacular locations we have enjoyed in previous years.”   Lynne EVANS, Chairwoman of Archery GB, said: "On behalf of Archery GB, we are absolutely delighted the Archery World Cup Grand Final is coming to Britain, and delighted that the city of Edinburgh will be the hosts. We hosted a World Cup stage in Dover two years ago, and that was a big success, but the Grand Final takes it to a new level, and I'm really excited that Edinburgh has shown such enormous enthusiasm to host the event. I know it will be a big success, and that the archers from around the world who will have qualified through the elimination process, plus archers from the United Kingdom, will be made extremely welcome, and have a wonderful time.”   For more information:   Mike PINKERTON Media Officer City of Edinburgh Council Phone: +44 131 529 6471 Email: Michael.pinkerton@edinburghleisure.co.uk     Didier MIEVILLE FITA Communication Director