Venue Rozen Plaza Hotel | Dates August 8–10, 2013 | |
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Location Orlando, Florida, United States | ||
The 2013 World Yo-Yo Contest was the culminating yo-yo competition of the worldwide competitive circuit. The winners from this competition in any of the six championship divisions were deemed the current World Yo-Yo Champion until the 2014 World Champions were crowned. The competition was run by Gregory Cohen injunction with the International Yo-Yo Federation (IYYF). The competition took place at the Rozen Plaza Hotel in Orlando, Florida, USA from August 8–10, 2013.
Contents
History
The first World Yo-Yo Contest was held in London, England, in 1932. The winner was Harvey Lowe. However, the contest was not held annually until 1992, when Dale Oliver started one in Montreal, Canada during that year's annual International Jugglers' Association's (IJA) convention. The contest was held during this convention until 1999, when it was held in Hawaii. The 2000 contest was held at Universal Studios in Orlando, but in 2001, the event moved to the Rosen Plaza Hotel, where it was held annually until 2013 by Gregory Cohen, owner and operator of YoYoGuy and Infinite Illusions. After the 2013 contest, an international coalition (the IYYF) was formed to organize a new, rotating contest which will be held in a different venue/country every year.
Champions
List of past World Yo-Yo Champions
1A
Hungary's Janos Karancz became the first European to win the 1A division at the World Yo-Yo Contest. 2013 was also the first, and only, year to feature a top-3 in 1A with no players from Japan or the United States. Coming into the competition, Janos had been undefeated sweeping the Hungarian National Title, and European Title; there was considerable expectation for him despite it being his first World Yo-Yo Contest. Notably, Hiroyuki Suzuki fell out of the top 5 for the first time since 2003.
2A
Following Shu Takada's 2012 World Title in the 2A division, 2013 was set up as a rematch between Takuma Yamamoto and Shu Takada. This time, despite a very innovative routine from Shu Takada, Takuma Yamamoto's elite technical skill proved too much to overcome, and he secured his second World Title, his first in 2008. Japan, once again, swept the top three with Ryu Yamashita taking third.
3A
Following an impressive win at the 2012 US National Yo-Yo Competition, Patrick Borgerding came into the 3A finals with considerable momentum. He challenged two-time defending champion Hank Freeman, but fell short. Hank Freeman completed a routine with only two minor mistakes—a record for the division—en route to securing his third consecutive World Title. Strong performances from Yasuki Tachibana, Alex Hattori, and Eric Tranton made the 2013 3A division perhaps the strongest it had ever been.
4A
2013 was an extremely unusual year, with every player accumulating at least one major deduction. After defending champion Rei Iwakura racked up thirteen major deductions, the door was left open for up and coming star Michael Nakamura to take the World Title. Chun Hin Chan became the first player outside of the United States or Japan to finish top-3 in the 4A division.
5A
Takeshi Matsuura won his fifth World Title with relative ease over 2007 5A World Champion Tyler Severance.
AP
Japan's SP!N NATION won the AP division with a spectacular Cops and Robbers themed yo-yo skit.
Championship Divisions
The World Yo-Yo Contest has 6 championship divisions that award the title of 'World Yo-Yo Champion'
Championship Division Structure
There are a series of preliminary rounds before the final round at the World Yo-Yo Contest. In the past, anyone could enter the World Yo-Yo Contest. Competitors were allowed a one-minute routine, and a set number of players would make the finals. The preliminary rounds have been evolving over the years to accommodate the growing popularity of competitive yo-yos around the world.
In the 1A division, there was three rounds of competition. In 2A-5A, there was only the Preliminary (1 minute) and the Final (3 minute).
Participating Nations
There are 33 countries currently registered with the IYYF that have the right to seed a National Champion into the semi-final round at the World Yo-Yo Contest. IYYF is also in communication with several other countries (denoted by *), but, currently, these countries do not have the right to seed a National Champion to the semi-finals.