“Sports Festival is a celebration of sports, and for the next edition, we are preparing even more surprises and challenges for sports lovers of all ages. The event period for 2023 was not chosen by chance. We want to celebrate Children’s Day properly, with lots of joy through movement, and challenge kids to try all kinds of sports. Plus, I believe that children teach us best that ‘sport is fun.’ In addition to the initiation and sports demonstrations, we will also have exhibition matches, which we will announce soon,” said Mirel Alexa, director of Sports Festival.
As usual, the festival will take place in Central Park, the Children’s Park near the stadium, Radisson Park, Stadium Alley, Cluj Arena, Cluj Arena Plateau, BT Arena, Iuliu Hațieganu Park, and Rozelor Park.
The third edition of Sports Festival took place on June 9-12, 2022, bringing together 110,000 people who enjoyed the spectacle of sports. The event featured two impressive show matches dedicated to great athletes Horia Tecău and Adrian Mutu, a masterclass with the most sought-after tennis coach of the moment, Patrick Mouratoglou, the Superhero Run, Sports Talks, 21 sports that were tried for free by the public, sports demonstrations and competitions, concerts, and plenty of fun. But above all, it was an experience full of emotion, shared by thousands of people who participated in the festival.
Horia Tecău’s retirement match was a true tennis spectacle. Alongside his guests, the athlete put on an incredible show in front of over 7,000 fans gathered at BT Arena. The matches were an unconventional mix of gameplay and surprise moments. An Olympic silver medalist and three-time Grand Slam champion in doubles and mixed doubles, Horia Tecău played his official retirement match from his professional career. He was joined by Simona Halep, Swedish player Robert Lindstedt (his former doubles partner), Bethanie Mattek-Sands (his former mixed doubles partner with whom he won the Australian Open), Andrei Pavel, and Marius Copil. Even Patrick Mouratoglou, Simona Halep’s coach, stepped onto the court. Before Horia Tecău’s match, hundreds of tennis enthusiasts attended Patrick’s masterclass, The Art of Coaching.
Adrian Mutu’s retirement match was the gala event that gathered nearly 20,000 football fans at Cluj Arena. Divided into two teams, World Stars and Team Romania, Romanian and international football legends put on an incredible show. It was a sweet reunion and return to the field for great footballers, former teammates of the player who, alongside Gheorghe Hagi, scored the most goals for Romania’s National Team.
In 2022, over 13,000 children and adults discovered their sports skills and passion for a wide variety of sports, including aikido, basketball, cross-training, kayaking, darts, climbing, fitness, football, yoga/pilates, gymnastics, handball, kyokushin, mountain biking, rugby, roundnet, skiing, fencing, teqball, skiing, tennis, table tennis, and volleyball. They learned the rules from experienced coaches and players and had the chance to complete a marathon circuit of all sports available for initiation. Participants also received a sports passport, collecting stamps and medals for each sport they successfully learned. Access was free.
Sports Talks is a special section of Sports Festival that, in 2022, brought performance athletes in front of the public for discussions. They spoke about the need for mentors, what it means to be an athlete, and the values of success, perseverance, and dedication.
The festival also featured relaxation areas, on-stage classes, movement challenges offered by local sports clubs, and concerts.
