Join launch events for world glider championships

With England’s Lionesses’ football team winning the Euro Final at Wembley on Sunday, women’s sport is in the global spotlight, and the gliding championships, which are being held in the UK for the first time, are eagerly-anticipated.

The Championships will start on 13 August, until 27 August 2022, with the Gliding Centre at Husbands Bosworth transformed for two weeks of intense competition, as around 50 top women pilots from 12 international teams compete in the skies to become World Champion.

Competing teams are Great Britain (pictured top), France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Poland, Denmark (pictured below), Argentina, Czech Republic, Lithuania, Luxembourg and Ukraine (whose team has been crowd-funded to be able to take part).

During the competition, teams will race around courses of up to 500km at speeds up to 130kph – all with no engine.

There will be an opportunity to meet the teams at opening ceremony parades in Market Harborough on Saturday on 13 August 2022, from 10am to 4pm, with a welcome from the Lord Lieutenant of Leicestershire, Harborough FM, a ‘have a go on a glider’ flight simulator, decorated shop windows, competition trails, and food stalls. There will also be activities linked to the launch event happening in Lutterworth town centre from 11am to 3pm.

As well as the launch events, there will be a free open weekend on Saturday 20 August and Sunday 21 August to see how the competition works. Alongside the launching and landing, visitors will be able to track the progress of the gliders on the big screen as they race round the day’s course. The competition concludes with a Last Night Party on Friday 26 August with music, food stalls and the legendary Aerosparx pyrotechnic display team.

Cllr Phil King, Leader of Harborough District Council, said: “To have these championships hosted in – and above – our district is very exciting. We look forward to welcoming the international teams to the area, and I hope that people will enjoy and support our launch events and visit the open day which will be occasions not to be missed.”

For more information visit www.visitharborough.com/event/womens-world-gliding-championships-2022