Sports

Barcelona's sporting year will kick off once again with the best in grass hockey which will be on display at Barcelona's Reial Club de Polo. The traditional Torneig Internacional d'Hoquei de Reis is the best way to keep the players in shape at a time of year when play has stopped for the winter while the teams are getting ready for the second half of the season. The hosts at the RC Polo challenge the top Spanish and European teams to carry off this prestigious title.

The tournament offers four days of intense competition, divided into four categories: men's and women's senior and junior. There will also be time for spectators to show solidarity with disadvantaged children and to take a break and relax in the lively retail village. The 2012 tournament is particularly important as it takes place in an Olympic year. All the international players will endeavour to give their very best so that they can take part in the London Games. It is worth remembering that admission to the Reial Cub de Polo is free.

On 5th February, the Palau Sant Jordi will be hosting the 35 Trial Indoor de Barcelona and the 13 Enduro Indoor Internacional de Barcelona.

Indoor Trial and Indoor Enduro are two unique indoor sporting specialities that began life in Barcelona. Over the years, the competitions, which are organised by RPM Racing, have brought us great Catalan champions.

The world trials champions Toni Bou, Adam Raga, Albert Cabestany, and the World Enduro Champions, such as Taddy Blazusiak, the winner of the 2011 competition, and the charismatic World Enduro Champion, Iván Cervantes, will be sure not to miss this competition that, last year, attracted 10 riders with 54 world titles between them.

Both competitions will be held at Barcelona's Palau Sant Jordi on 5th February. The competition begins at 5.30pm and doors open at 3.30pm. Tickets will be on sale shortly through the Servicaixa automated ticket service.

Next March, Barcelona will be hosting another Zurich Marató de Barcelona. After breaking its participation record last year, when more than 15,000 runners took part, the Zurich Marató de Barcelona will be aiming to continue to grow and increase this number on 25th March.

Countless factors have contributed to the spectacular growth in participants in just 5 years: good organisation, Barcelona's many cultural and culinary attractions, and exceptional climate all year round, are just some of the factors that runners from abroad value highly when they choose Barcelona to run a marathon. ExpoSports, the runners' fair held on Friday 23rd and Saturday 24th March during the week of the marathon, offers more than 100 stands and has become the leading runners' fair in Spain. Last year it attracted 50,000 visitors.

Barcelona will be hosting the 4th Global Sports Forum from 7th to 9th March 2012.

The 2012 Forum will be the place to be creative where we can work together to improve the future of sport. Workshops, debates, networking and fun demonstrations will give you the opportunity to meet sporting icons, world experts and opinion leaders from key sporting institutions. Let's share our ideas and experience; let's learn and plan the future; let's build relationships and address the challenges that will be emerging over the coming decade.

Come and join us in Barcelona from 7th to 9th March and together we'll try to find the answer to the question “What's next?”.

The Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell, Trofeu Conde de Godó celebrates its 60th anniversary in 2012. The clay-court tournament, which has attracted the top tennis players of the past six decades, will be held on the courts of the Reial Club de Tennis Barcelona – 1899 from 21st to 29th April.

Once again, the Mallorcan player Rafael Nadal will be the hot favourite to carry off the trophy. In 2011, he claimed his sixth Barcelona Open title, twice the number of trophies held by legends of the calibre of Roy Emerson, Manuel Orantes and Mats Wilander. The best Spanish player of all time has already confirmed he will be playing in the 60th championships organised by his club.

In addition to Nadal, some of the world's other top-ranked tennis players are also expected to attend. This is because, last year, the Barcelona Open Banc de Sabadell was named the best tournament on the ATP 500 World Tour as seven of the world's top ten players took part.

Barcelona's Reial Club de Polo will be hosting the 44th Torneig Internacional de Polo -Barcelona Polo Classic, over two weekends in early May. There will be three matches every day (Friday, Saturday and Sunday) which will pit six teams of top Spanish and international players with a medium handicap against one another.

Polo is one of today's most spectacular sports. The beauty of the movements, the harmony between the players and their mounts, and the energy of the horses make it something more than a sport. The technique and skill of the polo players combine with the power and quality of the horse. Polo is a thrilling team sport in which the player and horse must be perfectly in tune. The technique and skill of the players are combined with the power and elegance of the horses. Sporting spectacle and beauty are the magical combination that dazzles the spectators who also enjoy the unbeatable atmosphere in the fabulous setting of the Reial Club de Polo.

The Barcelona Polo Classic is an unbeatable opportunity for people to experience this historic sport, which is one of the world's oldest. The panoramic grandstand overlooking the polo field, with its exclusive bar and restaurant, provide the public with comfortable surroundings in which to enjoy the competition. The club also has a limited number of invitations which are available on request, from April onwards, by calling the club's offices.

If you don't come this year, you'll have really missed out! On 11th, 12th and 13th May 2012 you'll be able to enjoy one of the greatest shows on earth, the Gran Premio de España Santander de F1, at the Circuit de Catalunya. Can you afford to miss it?

Buy your ticket now on www.circuitcat.com and get ready to feel all the excitement of Formula 1. Your ticket to the Grand Prix also entitles you to additional advantages including free admission to the F1 Test Days, the pre-season training sessions held at the Circuit from 21st to 24th February and from 1st to 4th March. You'll also be able to take a tour of the pit lane on the day of the Grand Prix and see the drivers and mechanics in their garages, and on the three days of the competition you'll have access to all the public areas...

The Reial Club Nàutic de Barcelona will be hosting the 39th Trofeo Conde de Godó de vela on 25th, 26th and 27th May.

Once again the organisers expect high participation levels, with some 50 boats in the Cruise, Classic, Vintage and Monohull categories distributed in three regatta fields that will be set up along the Barcelona coastline, filling the Barcelona sea with colour.

The Trofeo Conde de Godó de vela is a sporting competition dating back many years which is recognised both nationally and internationally. The Reial Club Nàutic de Barcelona is working with great enthusiasm and pride on next year's anniversary which will mark four decades of the championships.

Come and experience all the excitement at the Circuit de Catalunya! On 1st, 2nd and 3rd June 2012, the Circuit will be hosting the Gran Premi Aperol de Catalunya de MotoGP. Over the weekend, fans will be able to enjoy the best in motorcycle racing and see their heroes, including Jorge Lorenzo, Casey Stoner, Valentino Rossi, Dani Pedrosa, Nico Terol, Marc Márquez, etc.

The three-day competition will bring together up-and-coming young riders together with the top-ranking and best-known riders from around the world, who will have fans gripped with excitement.

Buy your ticket now on www.circuitcat.com and get ready to feel all the excitement of motorcycle racing at the Circuit de Catalunya.

For the fifth year running the Parc del Forum will be the venue for the LKXA Barcelona Extreme. On 9th and 10th June, Barcelona will once again be hosting one of Europe's leading extreme urban sports events that will attract some 35,000 spectators over two days of intense competition. The combination of professional competition, with top riders from Spain and abroad, and an amateur section, which is open to up-and-coming young talents, means that excitement is guaranteed, providing competitors with the opportunity to compete in top-quality facilities. The competition programme includes freestyle skateboarding (street and halfpipe), BMX (park and flatland), FMX, Inline (park and half pipe), BTT (dirt) and scooter (park).

LKXA Barcelona Extreme will also have a large fingerboarding park which will host Spain's leading fingerboarding competition, Goldfinger; and the music venue Estrella Damm Urban Sounds, which will feature performances by emerging new bands, as well as displays and other complementary activities for all audiences. The event will also have a retail village where you will find all the shops from the sector, as well as the Brand Village, the meeting point for leading brands.

The Barcelona 2012 World Junior Athletics Championships will be held at the Montjuïc Olympic Stadium from 10th to 15th July 2012. They will be a unique opportunity to see the sports stars of the future taking part in the Olympic sport par excellence.

The competition was first held in Athens in 1986, and many of the junior champions from the 12 championships held to date have gone on to take their place on the podiums at the world's great athletics meetings, including the World Championships, the Olympic Games and the European Championships.

Spain will be showcasing its junior team of 40 top-level athletes at this great sporting event. Throughout the history of the championships, the Spanish team has won 24 medals: five golds, 12 silvers, and seven bronzes.

The Reial Club Nàutic de Barcelona will be hosting the 5th Regata Puig Vela Clàssica Barcelona from 11th to 14th July, which is sponsored by Puig.

The competition involves wooden boats from the vintage division built before 1950 along with wooden boats built between 1950 and 1975, both vintage and classic, grouped together in the “Big Boat” class, which are over 30 metres long. It will once again fill Barcelona and its coastline with historic, elegant and spectacular sailing boats.

The Regata Puig Vela Clàssica Barcelona is part of the official competition calendar of the International Committee of the Mediterranean and will attract large numbers of boats from around Europe.

The Reial Club Nàutic de Barcelona and Puig have joined forces to make this regatta a key sailing event in Barcelona.

The appeal of the king of sports, played by the current Spanish League and Champions League title-holders, coupled with the beauty of the Camp Nou, offers visitors unique live entertainment.

The Joan Gamper Trophy : The competition kicks off the football season in August, when Barça presents its new signings and plays against some of its most prestigious international rivals.

The Spanish League, the King's Cup and Champions League: From August to May, the entertainment continues at Camp Nou. Every match is a unique experience shared with “just” 98,000 fans. Seeing Guardiola's boys (Messi, Puyol, Xavi, Villa...) in the flesh is an unforgettable experience.

Basketball: The stars of Barcelona FC's basketball team are the current Spanish League champions and firm candidates to win the Euroleague. The warm atmosphere of the Palau amazes all its visitors.

Every August the Ciutat de Barcelona Trophy marks the start of the football season with a match featuring RCD Espanyol.

The evolution of the football market has made the RCDE Stadium the ideal setting for more than just sporting competitions. The multifunctional facility has been designed to host events for two to 40,000 people.

The stadium is ideally located close to Barcelona, the airport and enjoys excellent public transport links, making it a key venue in the world of events and hospitality in Spain and around the world.

Visit the club and discover its history on a guided tour which provides access to its key areas: private boxes, the pitch, the main team's dressing rooms, the press room, etc.

Come and discover the stadium of dreams!

Once again, the Reial Club de Polo de Barcelona will be playing host to the CSIO Barcelona, the Official International Show Jumping Competition. For the second year running, this international sporting event, which is the oldest in Spain, will be held during the city's main festival, the Mercè. It will offer four days of top-level competitions. The club's Olympic circuit will play host to 20 nations represented by some of the world's top riders.

Competition highlights include the Gran Premi de Barcelona – Copa SEAT, the only night-time trial which is held during the traditional gala dinner; the Queen's Cup – Longines and the Nations Cup – FEI Promotional League Final, whose winning team will become the world's top riders in 2013.

The CSIO Barcelona combines sporting spectacle with thrilling riding displays that will keep the spectators entertained during the breaks between the competitions. Great acrobats, showjumpers and the Barcelona Municipal Mounted Police Display, to name just some, will entertain and amaze young and old alike.

The large competition village is another of the main attractions at CSIO Barcelona. It features a wide variety of stands as well as an area where visitors can sample culinary specialities. It also has a panoramic restaurant that gives visitors the opportunity to enjoy a meal with views of this magnificent sporting event.

Once again, CSIO Barcelona will be setting up the Pony Park which introduces kids to the world of riding. Riding sessions are supervised by instructors from the Reial Club de Polo riding school.

Now established as one of Europe's biggest triathlons, the Garmin Barcelona Triathlon is back for another year. Last year's competition attracted more than 6,000 participants who transformed Barcelona's coast, streets and landmark areas into a world triathlon festival, with triathletes from 27 countries taking part.

The presence of the top triathletes from Spain and abroad in this elite competition guarantees a thrilling sporting spectacle for the 36,000 spectators who came to watch the event.

The world's elite triathletes make sure they don't miss this sporting event and personalities such as the current world IMG, the executive company and organisers, and the promotional committee, which comprises Barcelona City Council, Turisme de Barcelona, the Federació Catalana de Triatló and the Club Natació Catalunya, will be expecting you on 7th October.

The Jean Bouin is Barcelona's most prestigious athletics competition – there have been 88 of them held to date – due to its long-standing tradition and the top-level runners it attracts. The event is deeply rooted in the sporting culture of the Catalan capital. Not for nothing do 3,500 girls and boys take part every year in all the categories. The event also includes the Open which attracts over 10,000 participants.

The Jean Bouin is organised by Mundo Deportivo, Spain's oldest, and the world's second oldest sports newspaper (it was first published in 1906). Mundo Deportivo belongs to the Grupo Godó de Comunicación, Catalonia's leading communications group.