Some of the most picturesque locales in Turkey will host the World Air Games in 2020, according to an organizer of the event. The official signing ceremony for World Air Games 2020 in Turkey was held in Lausanne, Switzerland on late Wednesday. World Air Sports Federation (FAI) head Frits Brink said afterward, "The games will take place in some of the most iconic locations in Turkey, including the country's cosmopolitan capital Ankara and tourist destination Antalya."
The fifth FAI World Air Games will take place in Turkey in September 2020, the second time Turkey will be hosting the event. "l know Turkey will do everything they can to make the 2020 games the best ones yet," Brink said. "One of the differences for the games in Turkey is it will be held in different locations and the venues are really fantastic." "We had some other very good bids, some other potential organizers, but Turkey was by far the best," he added. Turkey was among seven candidates competing for the mega event and was chosen unanimously to hold the games in 2020 by board members of the World Air Sports Federation.
After the Olympics, the air games are the biggest contest in terms of participants. Over 4,000 athletes from more than 100 countries in five different regions are expected to compete in the 2020 games in Turkey. Hundreds of millions of dollars in tourism revenue are also expected from the event. Kürşat Atılgan, the head of the Turkish Aeronautical Association who also participated in the signing ceremony, said, "The 2020 World Air Games will be great chance to promote our country as well. The official slogan of the World Air Games is ‘The future is in the skies'."
Activities in the games include aerobatics, aeromodelling, drone racing, gliding, indoor skydiving, and paragliding, to name just a few. Drones are also expected to be added to the 2020 games. The aim of the event is to showcase aerial sports to the general public and attracting new participants, as well as promoting FAI events to other sports organizations and creating an attractive platform for TV, media, and other external stakeholders. Running since 1997, previous hosts of the games include, Spain (2001), Italy (2009) and Dubai, UAE (2015), and its first-ever host, Turkey (1997).