The year 2022 will bring close to ninety high-level international competitions to Tallinn, including twenty-one World and European Championships as well as World and European Cups. In total, Tallinn will support hosting international sports events with more than €865,000 this year.

According to Deputy Mayor Vadim Belobrovtsev, Tallinn has been hosting an array of major international sports events for the last few years. "The international major championships previously held in Tallinn are proof that the venues, accommodation, catering and transport facilities and the competence of the organisers are of a sufficiently high standard to meet the strict rules set for holding high-level championships," said Belobrovtsev. "An example of a good compliant venue is the Tondiraba Ice Hall, which this year will host nearly half of the World and European Cup competitions held in Tallinn. I wish all the organisers of the major competitions every success for another year of high profile sports and invite fans to actively take part in the championships in Tallinn," said the Deputy Mayor.

This year, various sports event will bring to Tallinn thousands of top, junior and amateur athletes from more than 100 countries from all over the world. Major championships will take place in almost every month throughout the year. The year started with top-level figure skating competitions in the Tondiraba Ice Hall, which hosted the ISU European Figure Skating Championships and, for the first time, the ISU Four Continents Figure Skating Championships. According to Maire Arm, President of the Estonian Skating Union, the start of this year has been very special for the Union. "The opportunity to host such high level competitions is a great honour and recognition, but at the same time a great responsibility. I hope that these top-level figure skating competitions will not be the last to be held in Tondiraba Ice Hall: we have an excellent venue, an experienced and professional team and good partners, thanks to whom great figure skating competitions have been held in Estonia before and will hopefully continue to be held in the future."

This year, the Estonian Curling Association will organise four World Cups in different classes. "Holding four World Cups in the Tondiraba Ice Hall is possible thanks to two factors. First of all, because Tallinn has an arena that meets all the requirements, and good cooperation partners, including the City of Tallinn," said Harri Lill, member of the board of the Estonian Curling Association. "In addition to the high quality of the competitions, the training facilities here are also highly appreciated, which brings more and more foreign athletes to Tallinn every year for training camps, which is why the Tondiraba Ice Hall has become increasingly popular among the world's top players."

The Estonian Ice Hockey Federation has once again earned the right to host the U18 World Championship Second Division tournament in Tallinn. According to Rauno Parras, President of the Estonian Ice Hockey Federation, being awarded with the right to host such a major tournament confirms that the Tondiraba Ice Hall is a world-class competition centre. "Tondiraba Ice Hall is hosting more and more major competitions, but this also highlights a bottleneck, namely the shortage of ice rinks in Tallinn," Parras said. "It is not possible to organise training sessions at the ice rink during competitions, and the possibilities to temporarily hold training sessions at another rink are very limited. The construction of new rinks would undoubtedly help to alleviate the shortage and give a new impetus to the development of ice rinks," Parras added.

Alongside the traditional Women's Fencing World Cup and the Glaive de Tallinn competition, Estonia will be hosting the European U23 Championships in fencing for the first time this year. "What makes the European Fencing Championships in Tallinn special is that they will cover all disciplines of the sport. While the women's World Cup will only feature one discipline, the épée, the European Championships will include the épée, the sabre and the foil in both the men's and women's competitions," explained Heino Märks, Acting Secretary General of the Estonian Fencing Federation. "While this year's U23 European Championships are for youth, the next goal is to bring the European Championships for adults to Estonia," Märks added.

In terms of the number of medals won at the championships in recent years, one of the most successful sports in Estonia is powerboating. In 2022, the Estonian Powerboating Union will give young powerboating athletes the opportunity to compete for medals at their home Harku Lake. According to Algo Kuus, Secretary General of the Estonian Powerboating Union, the association is delighted to be hosting the championship. "Harku Lake is a world-renowned water motor sport centre, which has also been selected as one of the three best water moto centres in the world in 2016. This is also confirmed by the fact that the number of participants in the title races at Harku Lake is often higher than at any other venue," said Kuus.

In addition to international championships, the traditional Tallinn Marathon and IRONMAN Tallinn are the most significant sporting events held in Tallinn. According to Ain-Alar Juhanson, the chief organiser of IRONMAN Tallinn, the triathlon event has been significantly affected by the coronavirus pandemic over the past two years. "Nevertheless, the event has always been held and continuity has not been broken. While in the last two years, due to restrictions, the number of participants has been below the recommended number, this year we hope to see 3,600 athletes at the start line,” said Juhanson.

Renna Nelis, organiser of the Tallinn Marathon, said that the COVID-19 crisis and the dramatic increase in everyday expenses were affecting the opportunities and motivation of many people to take up sport. "At the same time, participation in grassroots events is one of the most important motivators for many people to take part in regular physical activity. We are trying to support people in these difficult times. To this end, we have decided to reduce the participation fees by up to a quarter depending on the distance," said Nelis.

More info:
Aivo Normak
Deputy Head of the Tallinn Department of Culture and Sport
Juhkentali 12, 10132 Tallinn
640 4695
5147775