ALBANY — Next week, world class athletes will shoot, jump, tumble and skate like girls in a first-of-its-kind event.
The Times Union Center is to host the inaugural Aurora Games, an international, world-class, all-women’s multi-sport competition and entertainment festival in downtown Albany from Tuesday Aug. 20 to Sunday, Aug. 25.
“This is an important cultural moment and we are excited to create an event that empowers female athletes and celebrates their unique contributions and accomplishments,” said Jerry Solomon, creator and executive producer of the Aurora Games.
The six-day event will include team and individual competitions in basketball, tennis, figure skating, gymnastics, ice hockey and beach volleyball.
Designed to celebrate the best in women’s sports, entertainment and culture, the Aurora Games will welcome all-star athletes, as well as coaches and trainers, representing more than 15 countries to downtown Albany to compete in an international competition of teams comprised of the Americas vs. the World.
“We did a lot of homework on a lot of different locations,” said Solomon, who admitted that he did not initially see Albany as the first choice for the host city. “We had done some events here in the past. Have a good relationship with {TU Center General Manager] Bob Belber and the people at the arena.” When Solomon spoke with Belber about his idea for the games, he was encouraged to pay a visit.
“It was perfect,” said Solomon. “The city, the state and the county have all jumped in and we think it was a great decision.”
The high-profile advisory board for the Aurora Games includes such iconic athletes including nine-time Olympic medalist Nadia Comaneci, who was visiting the Capital District last October when Solomon announced that Albany would host the Aurora Games.
It’s been more than 40 years since Comaneci flew into the imaginations of girls and young women when she earned the first Perfect 10 in Olympic competition during the 1976 Summer Games in Montreal.
Not first for just women, but in all competition.
“Usually your favorite event is the one you are best at,” said Comaneci, standing in front of dozens of young gymnasts gathered at the World Class Gymnastics Academy in Latham. She had arrived after it was announced that Albany would be hosting a unique, all-women’s international competition.
Children and parents sat doe-eyed as the Olympic champion spoke of her experience. Parents old enough to recall the awe in which the Comaneci name inspired with each Olympics, while images of 14-year-old Nadia still ran freshly through each kids minds. She was speaking their language.
“Gymnastics opened the doors for me to travel and see places that I could never see as an 8-year-old,” said Comaneci. “There were limited opportunities for us at the time, and gymnastics was the only thing I was thinking of at the time.”
In the United States, Title IX legislation preventing gender discrimination in education, including scholastic sports, became law just a few years before Comaneci earned her first gold medal. Nonetheless, there would still be battles to create more opportunities for girls and women. For example, it wouldn’t be until 1991 when the world competed in the first women’s World Cup of soccer.
Shyann Bootnan, an 11-year-old gymnast at the academy demonstrated her skill on the uneven bars — the same event Comaneci earned her first Perfect 10. All eyes were on her, including Comaneci’s, as she spun and flew before landing a flawless dismount, her face beaming with a smile as her feet planted firmly on the ground.
“I was so excited to meet her,” said Bootnan, who also competes in vault, balance beam and floor. “I didn’t know I was going to do [the demonstration] until I walked through the doors today. It was kinda, really nerve-racking.”
Like many of the girls in the room, Bootnan started competing at a young age. Where Comaneci was 6, Bootnan was 4. Today, she’s “always” competing. When asked which of her four events was her favorite, she said:
“My favorite event right now is all of them.”
