At the start of the recent 100-day countdown until the 2020 Nanjing World IAAF Indoor Championships, both the event’s logo and slogan were revealed, confirming that Nanjing is on track to deliver another exceptional international sporting tournament.
From 13 March to 15, the 2020 World IAAF Indoor Championships will be held in Nanjing, the first time for China to host the World Indoor Track and Field Championships. The venue for the games is the Nanjing Cube, a purpose-built facility that is also the first domestic professional indoor track and field stadium.
After selection following a public call by the organising committee, the slogan for the games has been confirmed as, “Nanjing’s Cube, Where Athletes Dream”.
The Cube can accommodate an audience of 5,000 on removable seating and has been designed such that after the event is held, the venue can continue to meet the needs of athlete training and citizen fitness, ensuring a high future utilisation rate of the facility.
The championships also sport a flashy logo, one that according to Zhang Qingfeng, the head of the logo design team, incorporates a W-shaped emblem required by the IAAF, while cleverly blending together the “N” and “J” of Nanjing. The “N” and Nanjing’s iconic Zifeng Tower merge into one, while the “J” resembles both the track and the extension of a city road, integrated with the city wall.
Bright purple and orange in colour, the logo conveys feelings of speed and movement, and echoes the colours of the IAAF logo. In the middle of the purple-orange gradient is the image of a hurdling athlete, which not only shows the power and beauty of track and field sports, but also illustrates Nanjing’s unremitting pursuit of leapfrog development.
Liu Tong, Deputy Secretary General of the Jiangsu Sports Commission and Deputy Director of the Jiangsu Sports Bureau, said, “Sport is the common language of mankind and an important bridge connecting Nanjing to the world. The 2020 Nanjing World Track and Field Championships will be a grand event that belongs to Nanjing, China and the world. It will showcase Nanjing’s image as an innovative and dynamic sports city and the sportsmanship of athletes around the world”.
In addition, at the 100-day-countdown ceremony, the organising committee also solicited ideas for a mascot for the 2020 Nanjing World IAAF Indoor Championships. Individuals, institutions and groups can submit proposals, while the committee accepts both electronic and postal submissions. The concept for the mascot should conform to the spirit of the times and today’s modernity, reflect the spirit of track and field and highlight Nanjing’s regional characteristics and cultural history. The call for entries is until 20 December, 2019.
Entries may be submitted by email; marketing@worldathleticsnanjing2020.com. The required format for both subject and attachment is “Nanjing 2020 mascot contribution + [entrant’s name]”.
Entries of a more bulky or 3-dimensional nature may be submitted by post; Market Development Department of 2020 Nanjing World IAAF Indoor Championships, 99 Chengnanhe Lu, Pukou District, Nanjing, 210009; for the attention of Liang Xiaoguang; Tel: 13851702415. Entries should be marked “mascot contribution” in the lower left corner of the envelope.
For further inquiries, call (025) 58071532.
