World Gymnastics Championships

 The World Gymnastics Championships provided the team with a number of unique challenges that had been unlike many events we had worked on before.  With the inclusion of national anthems, medal ceremonies, music playback for dancers to hear during floor routines, roving presenters and an opening ceremony that went from belting bagpipes to world-class ballet in the blink of an eye, this was no regular arena production.

It was essential for the audience to be able to follow what was happening on the floor at any one moment, as many of the events ran alongside each other.  For this event, the PA was flown in the round. With a total of 60 d&b V-Series cabinets being flown across six hangs each consisting of 2 V Subs at the top of the array followed by V8 and V12 line array boxes.  This allowed the commentators and event staff to keep the 10,000 spectators up to date with performances and scoring from every country as each day progressed.

Music playback for the gymnasts was taken care of with several smaller hangs of V8s and V12s, while d&b M4’s chosen for their low profile were hidden around the sprung floor for some near-field coverage.  A number of d&b YP and E series point source cabinets were deployed around the gymnasts’ floor, as well as backstage to give athletes a live feed from commentary and from events team, making sure each country knew when it was their time to perform in the arena.  Amplification was handled by 24 d&b D80 Amplifiers distributed and networked across the venue.