The Colloquium is organized each year from the Technical Committee of the Gymnastic for All of the FIG (International Gymnastics Federation).

The social impact of Gymnastics for All was a major talking point at the annual FIG Colloquium in Baku (AZE) last week.

The impact of the sport figured prominently on the second and third days with different federations offering delegates some fascinating and inspiring examples of how GfA touches the lives of people of all ages and abilities and backgrounds. Two particularly strong examples came from GfA groups within the Aboriginal community in Australia and among women receiving cancer treatment in Brazil.

“There were so many different examples and those were just two,” said Rogerio Valerio, president of the FIG GfA Committee. “The federations brought so many different perspectives and we were grateful to hear them all.”

The opportunity to share knowledge – and learn from others – is a central purpose of the Colloquium, as was also reflected by the concluding activity on 4 April, a series of ‘GfA around the world’ sessions which gave countries a platform to explain both their latest activities and upcoming projects.

Speakers on the first day included Farid Gayibov, the president of European Gymnastics who delivered a welcome address in his capacity as Azerbaijan Sports & Youth minister.

Forty-one national federations from across the worldwide GfA community came together for the Colloquium, which featured three days of presentations and discussions between 2-4 April.

Meanwhile, with this being the first Colloquium held under the patronage of UNESCO, Seymur Fataliyev, secretary-general of UNESCO’s national commission in Azerbaijan, was there to speak about the importance of this new partnership and the hopes for closer collaboration.

Also on the agenda on Day One were July’s World Gym for Life Challenge in Lisbon (POR) where the Eurogym 2026 Pistoia’s Loc will be present with a corner to promote the event. Valerio explained: “At last year’s Colloquium the committee had asked delegates for their proposals on how to upgrade it and make it more user-friendly. They were happy with the results and validated the new approach, which was an important step.”

For the Italian Gymnastics Federation, were present the DTN/GpT Emiliana Polini and the Team Manager Fabio Gaggioli.

The Executive Director Eurogym 2026 presented the 5th edition of European Gym for Life Challenge and the 15th edition of Eurogym will be held on Pistoia, Tuscany, Italy on July 2026 to the National Federation and spread a lot of informations and replied to a lot of questions about the event.

“It was a great pleasure to take part to the simposium organized by the FIG” said Simone Monaco, Executive Director Eurogym 2026. “What made this event stand out was the unique and effective approach to case studies, the meaningful sharing of real-life experiences, and the open exchange of best practices and policies dissemination. It was not only enriching, but also incredibly motivating”.

“I really want to appreciate the AGF (Azerbaijan Gymnastics Federation) and my friend Mr. Ruslan Eyvazov for the very well organized appointment and for the warm hospitality they reserved us”.