A NEW event which brings together the European Championships of a range of top sports is to be held in Glasgow in 2018.
The sporting partnership with Berlin will attract around 2900 top athletes to Scotland and attract a TV audience of 850 million.
It is expected the event will boost the city's economy by more than £100m.
Scotland's biggest city will be host city to four sports including cycling and swimming as part of the first inaugural European Sports Championships, four years after it hosted the Commonwealth Games.
The athletics competition will be held in the German capital and it is hoped golf will be included in the event and be based at Gleneagles.
The governing bodies of some of top European sports believe joining forces will create a strong new brand on the world stage and increase TV audiences and sponsorship.
With more than 2700 hours of programming across some of Europe's broadcasters planned, the event will attract massive exposure across the continent.
To be staged in the summer of 2018, the European Sports Championships is expected to attract almost 3000 athletes to Scotland as part of a total delegation of around 8200 including officials and media.
A further 1500 athletes will compete in Berlin as part of the 10 to 12 day fixture.
Funded jointly by the Scottish Government and Glasgow City Council, the new event will build on the success of last year's games.
As a result of the link with Berlin , Glasgow will be promoted across Europe as a tourist and business destination.
Swimming, involving nearly 900 athletes, will be staged at three venues with the main event at Tollcross International Swimming Centre.
The diving and synchronised swimming will be held at the Commonwealth Pool in Edinburgh and the open water swimming competition at Loch Lomond.
The four cycling competitions, track, road race, mountain biking and BMX, will attract around 760 athletes to the Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome, the Cathkin Braes Mountain Bike Trails, the streets of Glasgow and a new BMX track to be built in the city.
It will be the first time all four cycling championships have been staged together.
Rowing and triathlon will involve around 760 athletes compete at Strathclyde Country Park in North Lanarkshire.
The athletics will take place in Berlin's Olympic Stadium, which hosted the track and field events at the 1936 games and also the 2006 World Cup final.
Glasgow's opening ceremony will take place in George Square where there will be a live celebration zone throughout the championships.
Sauchiehall Street and the Merchant City Festival will be live zones with the focus for all the activities being on the city centre.
The city will also stage a European Cultural Festival in collaboration with arts venues across the city.
Sports Minister Jamie Hepburn said: "The European Sports Championships will be another chance for Scotland to prove it's the perfect stage for top class events.
"Not only will this be a fantastic opportunity for Scottish sports fans to see some of Europe's top athletes competing in our world-class venues, it will also be attract visitors from around the continent, providing a great boost to the economy."
Councillor Gordon Matheson, Leader of Glasgow City Council, said: "I am delighted that Glasgow has been chosen by such prestigious sporting bodies to stage this new and exciting event in partnership with our friends in Berlin. We have been chosen because of our excellence and innovation and our proven ability to stage world-class events. Not to mention of course our citizens' world-famous warm welcome, so superbly demonstrated during the Commonwealth Games, described as the best ever staged.
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