The organizing committee of the 25th Agility World Championship in Estonia had to find out during the last months how close happiness and suffering are to each other. The event, which was actually planned at the beginning of September 2020, fell victim to the Covid-19 pandemic like so many other things. A week and many conversations later, the disappointment was followed by new hope. All already planned World Championships are postponed by one year and Estonia will be allowed to hold the tournament in 2021 instead of 2020. In a two-part series, we talked with the organizers about the unique decision in the history of the Agility world and why they decided to cancel the Event in 2020. In the first part of the interview we also take a look at the upcoming event and how the team remains confident despite many uncertainties.

agilitynow.eu Before we put our focus on next years Agility World Championship, we cannot avoid a few questions about the cancellation, which is unique in the history of the Agility World Championships. At which point did this scenario came up the first time for debate? After all, until the set date in September was still a long way off and the development of the Covid-19 pandemic was still very uncertain at the point of the decision.

AWC Estonia It was a really special year. We have seen government measures that the most of us did not believe that they are possible. The first serious news from China started to arrive in the end of January. In the middle of February it was clear that this virus will spread all over the world. On March 4th we had the first positive Covid-19 test in Estonia. Until that point we were not too concerned because the AWC was still months away.

From the first positive test on, the changes came very rapidly. We witnessed movement restrictions and also borders were closed. Travelling was stopped. In the middle of March we were still positive that this situation will not last for more than a month. In the end of March we could see that travelling in the whole world was almost not possible. Gatherings including Agility competitions were no longer possible. From that point on we worked with two scenarios. First scenario- AWC2020 is possible although maybe with fewer countries participating. Second scenario- AWC2020 is not possible, and we will have to postpone it. We decided to have a final decision not later than the 1st of June.

Unfortunately the Covid-19 situation got worse on a daily basis. We got signals from several countries that they are not able to have their qualifications nor to exercise for the AWC. So on April 22nd after long discussions we decided that it is not possible to have a fair AWC for all the participants and therefore it is for the best to postpone it. 

agilitynow.eu Like many other European countries, the Estonian government has taken various measures to contain the pandemic. Among other things, event bans were pronounced with a schedule that was uncertain at the time. How close and deep were you in contact with the authorities and the FCI as main organization behind the event?

AWC Estonia We contacted the Estonian authorities in March but the whole situation was so uncertain that they could only answer that everything is possible from holding the event as planned over to an event ban. Until the middle of August, no such indoor events were possible. The first loosening took place on 1st of September were indoor events with not more than 750 participants were allowed. It soon changed to 1500 spectators. The uncertainty was and still is severe.

agilitynow.eu One week after the cancellation, the FCI made also a unique step in the history of the Agility World Championship and postponed all events that had already been planned by one year and thus made it possible for you to host the 25th Agility World Championship. Instead of the originally planned in 2020, the event will now take place in the following year. Were there any plans with the FCI Agility officials before the cancellation or did you consciously take the risk of not hosting a World Championship in the next few years? After all, this is not an easy decision, especially from the financial point of view.

AWC Estonia It was clear that no AWC was possible on 2020. After realizing this we had few options: Move all coming AWC one year further, move the Estonian AWC to year 2023, move the Estonian AWC to year 2021 and the Russian AWC to 2023. We were in contact with the Russian and Czech organizers and also the FCI Agility committee to come up with a solution that suites all parties. Financial concerns were only one aspect- moving such a large indoor competition requires way more like a free venue time etc.

«We have to think about health safety during our competition but also we want to bring the AWC closer to all agility fans even if they are not in Tallinn.»

agilitynow.eu So the one-year postponement can be seen as an opportunity to make the already perfectly planned World Championship a little more perfect?

AWC Estonia We had some innovations planned for this year. But now with the AWC 2021 we will have new challenges. We basically need to prepare us now for a new type of AWC. We have to think especially about health safety during our competition but at the same time we also want to bring the AWC closer to all Agility fans, even if they are not in Tallinn.

agilitynow.eu At the same time, there are at the moment many indications of a second wave. And there is currently no real improvement in sight. What if the situation has not improved in April 2021? How likely is a final cancellation?

AWC Estonia In the end of the World War I Spanish flu had a huge impact on the humankind. More people died from the Spanish flu than during the World War I. The second wave of Spanish Flu had much more victims than the initial wave. Nevertheless, Spanish Flu disappeared from the face of the Earth without any real cure or vaccine. In the 1980s doctors discovered that a new virus was found- HIV. Specialists stated that a vaccine will be developed within 3 months. Now over 30 years later we have learned to live with HIV even though we do not have a vaccine or cure.

The same goes for Covid-19 virus. We do not know when a vaccine will be released. (Editor’s note: At the time of the interview, there was no date for a vaccine was foreseeable.) We do not yet know how we will cope with the second wave of the pandemic. Everything we know definitely is that we will learn to live with Covid-19. How the AWC 2021 will be held is still open, but we are pretty sure that it will take place. The world can not be in lockdown for such a long time period. It may, will have some new restrictions, and we will have allowed fewer spectators or that all the spectators will have to wear masks. Or maybe some new solution that we do not yet know of.

«For us, it was clear that it was not possible to have the AWC this year and at that point we were already working for the AWC2021.»

agilitynow.eu The last few months have probably been a huge rollercoaster ride for the whole team behind the project Agility World Championship in Estonia. First the disappointing news of the cancellation and shortly afterwards the acceptance for the following year. How did this affect the mood within the team and what is the current situation among them?

AWC Estonia Fortunately for us the cancellation and acceptance for the next year were very close together. Furthermore, we were 90% sure of the outcome. For us, it was clear that it was not possible to have the AWC this year and at that point we were already working for the AWC 2021. Acceptance for the next year was a success and that inspired us to go on. Of course, we were disappointed that the AWC was postponed but the extra time to prepare gives us the opportunity think even bigger.

agilitynow.eu Even before the tournament was officially cancelled, rumors had been circulating on social media from a letter to the Canadian association that had found its way into the public. The official confirmation to the general public followed a few days later. Was that a mistake in retrospect or did you consciously wait until everything was really safe and confirmed?

AWC Estonia Rumors about the AWC started already in March after the Junior AWC was cancelled. We did our best to have a clear communication regarding the AWC. Estonian Kennel Union made the decision to cancel this year AWC and apply for the next year on April 22nd. Right after this decision was made, we published this also in all our public channels. Before that we could not confirm that the AWC has been cancelled, and we did not want to deny it because it would have made the communication even more confusing.

agilitynow.eu In the aftermath, you immediately apologized publicly to your helpers because most of them didn’t get to know about it from firsthand either. A step that brought you a lot of sympathy. How important is transparency to your helpers, partners and the community in general?

AWC Estonia The AWC is an event that is organized fully based on volunteers. All we can offer them is to be a part of the organizing team and treat them fair. Even though the AWC cancellation was something to be expected, it was not fair that a big part of our team did not get this message from us. A lot can happen in one year but we hope to see all of our volunteers at the AWC 2021.

We were in contact with our partners already in March to let them know where we are and what to expect. Luckily for us all of our partners were really understanding and supportive. We are fortunate to have such nice partners, and that they will be a part of AWC 2021 too.

agilitynow.eu How much value you place on the community was seen during the last World Championship in Finland, where you were also represented with a stand. Practically every time I walked past it; there was a huge crowd in front of it. Did you expect this success?

AWC Estonia AWC 2019 was a big success for us. We did not expect such a huge interest for our stand. We have to thank Yrjö and Anri and all the people from the Finnish organizing team- you all were very supporting. As a surprise they gave the best location in the Venue to us, just to promote the next AWC. We have been contacted also by the Russian organizing team and of course the Russian stand will have a good location. Maybe the readers of agilitynow will give us feedback. The Russian stand intends to promote for AWC 2022 and also provide help in filling Visa documents. For that purpose would you prefer that their stand is in the hallway with no direct view to the course or in the venue above the seats with direct access from the seats and direct view to the course?

Vote and use the exclusive opportunity to have a say in where you want to have the promotion stand for the 2022 World Championship during the AWC in Estonia. The organizers of the Russian Agility World Championship in 2022 will help you there during the whole event with informations about filling out the required Visa documents to enter Russia.