Using the Olympic Games as a model, gymnastics leader Agne Holmström wanted to create a world event also for the non-competitive part of physical education. The occasion came
1939. One hundred years earlier, the ‘father of Swedish gymnastics’ Per Henrik Ling had died. In memory of Ling, Holmström and the Swedish Gymnastics Federation decided to welcome interested parties from all over the world to a gymnastics festival and congress on physical education – the first Lingiad was born.
The most spectacular feature of the Lingiad was the large mass parades held at the Stockholm Stadium, where the opening ceremony was also held. In total, over 7000 gymnasts participated in such shows. However, the idea of the Lingiad was not just to showcase gymnastics to an impressed audience. The idea was also that this would be an opportunity for gymnasts as well as their leaders and companions to meet, to see and learn from each other. In addition, there would be opportunities for study and discussion with the most eminent professionals, practitioners and scientists available. Against this background, the gymnastics festival was complemented by a separate ‘World Congress on Physical Education’, bringing together 1,500 people from 30 countries. Finally, a large international gymnastics camp was organized at Malmahed in Malmköping, Sweden, attracting over 500 gymnasts from 28 different countries.
For the Swedish Gymnastics Federation, Lingiaden was a great success. It was therefore decided that new Lingiads would be held every ten years.
So, in 1949, it was time again. The second Lingiad turned out to be twice as big as its predecessor. Over 14,000 gymnasts took part in the festivities. Once again, the event was a sporting and organizational success. On the other hand, the weather was less favorable, with the result that the Lingiad came to be popularly known as the “Rainy Day”. Two new features were that the International Gymnastics Federation (now World Gymnastics) was attracted to hold its own congress during the Lingiad and that a world sports exhibition was organized at Gärdet. Unfortunately, due largely to the weather, the latter exhibition was a major financial setback. This damaged the Lingiad’s legacy and contributed to the Swedish Gymnastics Federation’s decision to stop organizing Lingiads altogether.
This is where the story could have ended. But despite the storm, the International Gymnastics Federation was very impressed by what they saw. As a result, just four years later, the baton was passed and new international non-competitive gymnastics events were organized, this time under the name World Gymnaestrada. To this day, Gymnaestrador is organized every four years. They are the world’s largest recurring non-competitive sporting event, attracting up to 20,000 participants. A powerful tradition that was formed in Stockholm and at the stadium in the form of the Lingiaderna in 1939 and 1949 is still alive and well today.
