Photo of Montana Fouts by Gary Cosby Jr., The Tuscaloosa News. All other photos courtesy of The World Games.
Montana Fouts (left ) and sport climbing (right)
While each of the sports in The World Games 2022, whether traditional or new and unusual, has its appeal, Iron City Ink has compiled the following — admittedly subjective — list of five events that we’re particularly looking forward to. For details and tickets, go to twg2022.com.
► No. 1: Softball at the Hoover Met, July 9-13. Can the USA Softball Women’s National Team avenge their heartbreaking gold medal loss to Japan in last summer’s Olympics? We’ll find out when the U.S., Japan and six other nations compete at The Hoover Met. Eight members of the 2020 U.S. Olympic team, who won the silver medal in Tokyo, will be on Team USA. One of the returning Olympians is Haylie McCleney, who grew up in Birmingham and was a four-time All-American at The University of Alabama. Also on the squad is a fellow Crimson Tide star, pitcher Montana Fouts, who pitched a perfect game at the Women’s College World Series.
► No. 2: Wheelchair rugby at Birmingham CrossPlex, July 14-17. Most players pick up the intense, physical sport of wheelchair rugby after suffering spinal cord injuries. The mixed-gender competition in Birmingham will mark the first time the sport has been part of The World Games. Wheelchair rugby is “an exciting, fast-paced game,” said World Games 2022 CEO Nick Sellers. “We think it will be a hot ticket.”
► No. 3: Sport climbing at Sloss Furnaces, July 14-16. Sport climbing will be staged on a new 50-foot wall at Sloss Furnaces. The sport made its Olympic debut in Tokyo in 2021 and should be one of “the most exciting events” at TWG2022, Sellers said. Danyil Boldyrev of Ukraine and Natalia Kalucka of Poland, the world’s fastest climbers, will compete.
► No. 4: Lacrosse at UAB’s PNC Field, July 8-12. This year is the first time this ancient game’s inventors — the Haudenosaunee Nationals, also called the Iroquois Nationals — will compete in The World Games. TWG2022 will feature Lacrosse Sixes, a faster-paced, higher-scoring format of the sport.
► No. 5: Opening and closing ceremonies at Protective Stadium, July 7 and 17. In addition to fierce competition, the Games offer top-flight entertainment. Funk legend Bootsy Collins will serve as host for both the opening and closing ceremonies. Alabama, Nelly, Sara Evans, Sheila E., Tony! Toni! Tone! and Yolanda Adams will perform at the opening ceremonies. Tuskegee native Lionel Richie will be the headliner at the closing ceremonies, along with such artists as Martha Reeves, the Blind Boys of Alabama and American Idols Taylor Hicks, Ruben Studdard and Bo Bice.
