Marcel Hassemeier and US Flying Disc Team get top IWGA awards for 2013
COLORADO SPRINGS (31/03/2014)
The International World Games Association has awarded prizes to the 2013 “Athlete of the Year” and “Team of the Year”. The Flying Disc team from the United States received the prize from the hands of President Ron Froehlich at the IWGA headquarters in Colorado Springs. It was Ryan Farrell, one of the members of the gold-winning team at the 9th edition of The World Games in Cali, Colombia last year, who accepted the glass trophy in the presence of Tom Crawford, CEO of USA Ultimate. 
In a separate ceremony in Europe, the IWGA CEO presented the prize to the Athlete of the Year . Marcel Hassemeier from Germany received his trophy on the occasion of a board meeting of the German Life Saving federation in Bad Nenndorf. Marcel Hassemeier achieved four gold medals and a silver medal at the Life Saving competitions in Cali. The ceremony took place in the presence of the Vice President of the International Life Saving Federation, Detlev Mohr, and the President of the national federation, Hans-Hubert Hatje. In January 2014 supporters of The World Games had chosen their “Athlete of the Year” and “Team of the Year” in an on-line voting procedure.
Marcel Hassemeier (23) topped the poll with 21,871 votes. With his four gold medals and one silver medal in Life Saving, he was the most successful athlete of The World Games 2013. The Mongolian Sumo wrestler Gankhuyag Naranbat (12,744 votes) was ranked second. Third place went to Regina Jacques from the USA (Water Skiing) with 12,570 votes.
As for the team rankings, the gold medalists in Flying Disc from the USA achieved 16,744 votes. Following successes in Duisburg 2005 and Kaohsiung 2009, the USA achieved gold for the third time in a row at The World Games (this time beating Australia). The women from Chinese Taipei, gold medalists in Tug-of-War, came in second with 13,945 votes. The mixed team in Korfball from the Netherlands was placed some distance behind in third place with 3,574 votes.
Ron Froehlich congratulated Ryan Farrell on his team’s success in Cali and on topping the poll. Once again, he stressed that - thanks to the enthusiasm of the spectators in Cali - the Games had been a huge success for the IWGA and an unforgettable experience for the athletes. On the three competition days, more than 27,000 people watched the Flying Disc matches. Marcel Hassemeier also recalls the special atmosphere in Cali with enthusiasm and describes his participation in a multi-sport event as one of the pinnacles of his career. More than 11,000 spectators flocked to the Life Saving competitions on the two competition days.