42nd Artistic Gymnastics World Championships 2010 in RotterdamRie Tanaka and Philipp Boy win the Longines Prize for Elegance 2010
Longines, official timekeeper and data handler at the 42nd Artistic Gymnastics World Championships 2010 in Rotterdam, is pleased to announce that the Longines Prize for Elegance has been given to the female gymnast Rie Tanaka from Japan and the male gymnast Philipp Boy from Germany. This award decorates the athletes having demonstrated the most remarkable elegance in the course of the competition. Furthermore, Longines had the pleasure to present the latest attribution to its Longines PrimaLuna collection.
In gymnastics, the challenge of movement not only demands flawless execution but also grace, beauty and harmony known as “elegance”. At the 42nd Artistic Gymnastics World Championships, all participants in the individual all-around finals held on Friday October 22nd, were nominated for the Longines Prize for Elegance.
The athletes under consideration for the prize had been evaluated according to a number of complementary criteria. In addition to technical considerations, each athlete’s performance has been judged with respect to emotional appeal, beauty, charm, charisma as well as grace and harmony of movement. Clearly, each juror has interpreted these criteria individually, yet the result is often unanimous, as it was again on this occasion.
Longines Prize for Elegance
The jury of the Longines Prize for Elegance brought together Dr. Bruno Grandi, President of the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG), Fieke Willems, former gymnast and Dutch Champion, Carel Emmelot, Brand Manager Longines Netherlands and Walter von Känel, President of Longines. The Longines Prize for Elegance was presented in the form of a trophy created especially for Longines by the Swiss artist Jean-Pierre Gerber. Additionally, Rie Tanaka received a Longines PrimaLuna and Philipp Boy a Longines Admiral watch as well as a cheque for US$ 5,000 each.
The PrimaLuna model that Longines presented in Rotterdam combines the radiance of steel with the warmth of rose gold. The silvered flinqué dial is decorated with 11 blue-painted Roman numerals and blued steel hands. The mixture of steel and rose gold produces a subtle beauty that enhances the hard shine of the one and the soft warmth of the other. The circular stainless steel and rose gold case is set with 48 Top Wesselton VVS diamonds (0.403 carats) and houses a quartz movement L129. It features a date aperture at 3 o’clock. With its bracelet in steel and rose gold, this modern, elegant timepiece will enchant every woman who herself sparkles in the elegant moonlight.