CHICAGO TEENS SET TO COMPETE WITH MORE THAN 250 ATHLETES FROM 36 NATIONS IN CHICAGO FOR THE 10TH WHEEL GYMNASTIC WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP JULY 8 – 14

ChiIL Mama's thrilled to spread the word about Chicago's world class Gym Wheel athletes.   My own kids were coached by Wolfgang Bientzle at CircEsteem and we've watched these athletes above grow up the last 3 years.   We've frequently seen them rock the Gym Wheel in circus shows and it's always impressive.   Now they've got a chance to show the world their skills!    Check back with ChiIL Mama like we vote in Chi, IL... early and often.  We'll be running stills & video of these kids in action on the wheel in Circus Shows in the days leading up to their World Championship Competition.    MORE THAN 250 ATHLETES FROM 36 NATIONS COME TO CHICAGO FOR THE 10TH WHEEL GYMNASTIC WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP  JULY 8 – 14 Chicago is the First City Located Outside of Europe to Host the World Gymnastic Championship German-born Chicagoan and World Champion Wheel Master Wolfgang Bientzle is proud to announce the 10th Wheel Gymnastics World Championships taking place in Chicago, July 8 – 14, at the North Park University Gymnasium, 3225 W.Foster Ave. Hosted by the USA Wheel Gymnastics Federation and American SOKOL, the championships feature more than 240 athletes from nearly 36 nations. General admission tickets are available for $10, Junior Finals for $15, Senior Finals and Team Finals for $20 each and All Event tickets for $50. Also available are tickets to the Opening Gala at the Athenaeum Theatre (2936 N. Southport Ave.) on July 9 at XX p.m. for $25. For more information on the 10th Wheel Gymnastics World Championships and to purchase tickets, please visit www.wheel2013.com. The 10th Wheel Gymnastics World Championships, July 8 – 14, will mark the event’s first time taking place in a location outside of Europe. In addition to the athletes, 200 international delegates, dignitaries, judges and officials will attend the event, with public attendance being estimated at more than 10,000. Competition will be divided between males and females, and junior and senior competitors. Awards will be given for best All-Around, Spirale, Straight-line, Vault and Mono Wheel competitions. About the Wheel Gymnastics World Championships In 1924 Otto Feick invented and built the Rhönrad (the German Wheel), and shortly thereafter traveled all over Europe and to the USA to promote the newly-created sport of wheel gymnastics.  After a surge of popularity in the sport post-World War II, the Internationaler Rhönradturn-Verband (IRV) was formed to oversee all international competitions and training camps by the mid 1990’s. Seven member countries comprise the IRV and approximately 25 nations participate in the sport, with international training camps and World Championships being hosted on alternate years. The initial World Championship was held in Den Helder, Netherlands in 1995. About World Champion Wheel Master Wolfgang Bientzle, TheCirquesExperience WHEEL JAM German-born Chicagoan, director, choreographer and professional German Wheel Acrobat Wolfgang Bientzle is credited with being the most successful German Wheel Acrobat worldwide as a competitor, performer and coach, holding eight World Champion Titles, 11 European Champion Titles, and more than 60 German Champion Titles. As a performer, coach and choreographer, he has worked with Cirque du Soleil, Disney and Holiday on Ice. He has contributed to productions in more than 50 countries and is highly respected among the Monte Carlo Circus Festival and World Circus Festival in Moscow. As a performer, Bientzle’s work has been seen during NBA, NHL, and NFL halftime acts, as featured performances on various Royal Caribbean cruises, on numerous national and international television shows, and Cirque du Soleil, among many other events. As a professional coach, his credits include having coached the current reining male and female wheel gymnastics world champions and many Cirque du Soleil performers. He is also head coach of TSV Taunusstein, the German champion wheel team with 29 World titles, 26 European titles and over 200 National titles, and being head coach of the USA Gymnastic Wheel National Team, among many more credits. Bientzle is currently the director of operations of the USA Wheel Gymnastics Federation, a freelance choreographer and the executive producer, director, creative director and head coach for the Chicago Youth Circus. Additionally, Bientzle is the owner and lead educator of TheCirquesExperience WHEEL JAM, a Chicago Wheel Gymnastic training company which offers recreational, fitness and competitive Cirques style Gym Wheel and Mono Wheel classes for kids, teens and adults in 6 different venues within the city. It is the first organized competitive and recreational Wheel Gymnastic program in the USA, is a member of the USA Wheel Gymnastics and is supported by the International Wheel Gymnastics Federation. Many of the training staff are world-class and renowned competitors and performers in the World of Cirques and Sport. For more information on TheCirquesExperience WHEEL JAM, please visit www.wheeljam.net.