Panama Classic Cup, with 285 gymnasts

CORTESÍA/Club Marbella

Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador, Costa Rica, Venezuela, Colombia, Puerto Rico will all participate as Panama hosts.

The International Panama Classic Cup will be held from the 22nd to the 24th of September with the participation of eight countries, 29 clubs and 285 gymnasts at the Roberto Durán Arena.

The competition will have levels ranging from 1-10 and gymnasts like Isabela Saiz and Camille Amado will be there, as well as Natalie Sanchez, a Colombian Olympic athlete who trains in Panama and will represent a local club.

“This international interclub competition was previously known as the Marbella Cup, but was changed for marketing reasons, as well as in an effort to attract more athletes,” said Patricia Jaar, president of the Marbella Club.

“Our goal was to only host 200 athletes, but due to the high demand from the region we had to expand the numbers of participants,” she added.

The organizers attributed this phenomenon to innovations such as a journey through the Panama Canal Museum in Miraflores, which was an effort taken on the part of the Panama Tourism Authority.

One other change is that for the first time, the competition will feature levels 7 through 10. Gymnasts at this level are seeking to rank high enough to participate in the next Olympic Games.

The competition, which features free admission for the public, will start on Friday, September 23 at 9:00 am. Levels 7 – 10 will be featured first, followed by competition in levels 4, 5, and 6.

“The gymnasts from higher levels will compete first and will be evaluated by four international judges from U.S. Gymnastics, which is the governing body”, said Jaar.

Competition from Panama will include clubs from Marbella, Albrook, Santiago, Colegio Real, Enrico Fermí and No Limits. The competition is for women only.