Mayor’s Minute by Stewart Welch III - June 2022
The World Games are coming
The World Games are coming to the Greater Birmingham Metropolitan Area July 7-17. This represents truly a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for Mountain Brook and our region. The games are expected to attract over 500,000 visitors to watch the 3,600 elite athletes competing in both familiar and extreme sports.
We all love softball, gymnastics and lacrosse, but how often do you get an opportunity to watch world-class athletes from all over the world compete in sports such as sumo, kickboxing, wakeboarding, waterskiing, sport climbing, drone racing, archery, powerlifting, tug of war, wheelchair rugby and flag football (presented by the NFL)? Athletes are coming to compete from over 100 countries.
As Mountain Brook is one of the entranceways into downtown Birmingham, we are perfectly positioned to benefit from the thousands of visitors who can shop and dine in our villages, and book rooms at our hotels.
The Mountain Brook Chamber of Commerce and city are working together to develop a “Welcome to Our City” plan that includes a strong social media campaign and welcome banners. In a cooperative effort with the City of Homewood and the World Games, we installed an interstate welcome sign on U.S. 280 at the Hollywood Boulevard exit.
The World Games are organized with the support of the International Olympic Committee and its president, Thomas Bach, will attend the games. You can expect an outstanding opening and closing ceremonies with amazing musical performances and jaw-dropping special effects.
Famous artists set to take part include Lionel Richie; country supergroup Alabama; American Idol winners Taylor Hicks, Ruben Studdard and Bo Bice. Also look for performances by Yung Bleu, Pastor Mike Jr, Chuck Leavell and the Blind Boys of Alabama. Funk and R&B legend Bootsy Collins will serve as master of ceremonies. Dr. Henry Panion III, UAB professor of music and Grammy Award winner, will serve as the artistic director and is creating the musical score for the ceremonies.
Let us join together and show our Southern hospitality to the thousands of international guests from around the world this July. We have an opportunity to show the world that our community, region and state is a great place to live work and play. Highlights of daily competitions will be shown on the CBS Sports Network, so the “world will be watching” and it is our time to shine.
For more information on the 34 unique, multidisciplinary sports and details of the times, events and ticket opportunities, visit TWG2022.com. Some events have already sold out, so get your tickets now to your favorite sporting event.