On August 7, 2024, the one-year countdown to The World Games (TWG) 2025 Chengdu officially began with a series of celebrations held in Hong Kong, where the inaugural edition of TWG Series will be launched from October 11 to 13, 2024.
The celebrations included a special reception and various promotional activities, such as TWG Chengdu-Hong Kong tour exhibition and korfball and flying-disc demonstrations, along with try-on sessions for local residents.
During the reception, the TWG 2025 Organizing Committee invited global enterprises to join the event as "TWG partners," and a strategic cooperation agreement was signed between the committee and the Sports Federation and Olympic Committee of Hong Kong, China.
TWG 2025 Chengdu is scheduled from August 7 to 17, 2025. More than 4,000 athletes from over 100 countries are set to compete in 35 sports in this world-class multi-sport event.
The World Games Series Hong Kong will feature 88 global athletes to compete in three sports, cheerleading, roller sports, and Wushu, for a chance to qualify for TWG Chengdu.
World Games 2025 holds countdown ceremony in HK
Floodwaters in Lithia, a severely affected area in the southeastern U.S. state of Florida by Hurricane Milton, have not receded yet even four days after the landfall of the hurricane.
Milton hit the west-central coast of Florida as a Category 3 storm on Wednesday night, bringing strong winds, destructive tornadoes, and heavy rains before weakening to a Category 1 as it swiftly barreled across central Florida.
Lithia, situated southwest of Tampa, bore the brunt of the hurricane as it was right in the the path of Milton.
The heavy rainfall triggered by Milton swelled local rivers, resulting in flooding and the submersion of numerous homes, with many areas in Lithia still drenching in floodwaters.
"Milton came through and wrecked it. The storm didn't do too much of the flooding after the fact. About 12 hours after the storm, the water was in my backyard, didn't think it was going to get much higher 36 hours after the storm. Way better than a lot of people behind me, hopefully they're okay behind. But yeah, I got my neighbors. I think they got probably four or five, maybe six feet of water in the house, that yellow house over there," said Vladimir, a resident affected by the floods in Lithia.
Vladimir also said that they have not received any government assistance so far, with only local community organizations offering some food and water to the affected residents.
In parts of western and central Florida, river levels may continue to rise, with multiple areas still under flood alerts.
Rescue agencies caution that the floods are likely to impede the progress of post-disaster relief efforts. By Sunday afternoon, over 840,000 households in Florida were still without power, with almost 30 percent of gas stations unable to provide fuel.
Milton is the fifth hurricane hitting the Gulf Coast so far in 2024, with three of them striking Florida.
Floodwaters linger in Florida's hard-hit area days after Hurricane Milton's landfall
Floodwaters linger in Florida's hard-hit area days after Hurricane Milton's landfall
