Hannover International Fireworks Competition 2013

Hannover in Northern Germany plays host again this year to the 23^rd International Fireworks Competition. Set against the beautiful backdrop of the Royal Gardens of Herrenhausen, this fantastic competition brings together the best in the World to battle it out again this year to be crowned winners at the end of September.

The gardens, consist of 50 hectares of lawn, hedge-row, walkways and statues and are nothing short of spectacular. Since the last event, the long-awaited re-opening of Herrenhausen Castle took place on 17 January 2013. Whilst the exterior maintains the ‘historical palace’ in appearance, the interior is in contrast very modern. The reconstruction was financed by the Volkswagen Group and the building will, in the future, host academic, musical and social events as well as a museum.

The castle was originally damaged during WWII during a bombing raid (despite the Air Force being advised to ensure that the castle did not suffer damage by the British) 70 years ago. Princesses Eugenie and Beatrice were both in attendance for the re-opening, representing their grandmother, HRH Queen Elizabeth II.

The countries being represented at this year’s International Fireworks Competition are:

25^th May 2013 - Team Portugal - Grupo Suso Pirotecnia

8^th June 2013 - Team France - Intermede

24^th August 2013 - Team Czech Rep - Flash Barrabdov Special Effects

7^th September 2013 - Team Italy - Pirotecnica Morsani

21^st September 2013 - Team South Africa - Fireworks for Africa

This annual event attracts visitors from across the World and has continued to thrill spectators for the past 23 years with some truly breathtaking fireworks.

The teams must perform a 25-minute display with or without music and include a 4-minute compulsory section, a specified number of ground elements but other than that, to coin a phrase ‘the skies the limit!!’.

Last years winners were Portugal with the wonderful team from "Grupo Luso Pirotecnia" who will have the pleasure of kicking off this year’s competition on 25^th May.