On the open juggling floor, individual standouts attracted a lot of attention. Antonio Gucci and his seven ball routine set an example for everyone, while Todd Strong and Andrew Allen's talent with diabolos and devil sticks demonstrated there is more to juggling than clubs and balls.

 

Tim Bat with his comedy yo-yo routine caused a sell-out. Anyone trying to buy a Duncan on Sunday was disappointed. Gerard Estrem with his devil stick, Klapp's Kalli Kevlen Kompany hat routine and the other 390 individual talents represented a well of information for all who looked on.

 

At least eight prop manufacturers set up tables in the building. Three of them, one each from Denmark, England and Germany, had complete lines of equipment.

 

The rain held off long enough to allow games in the Romerplatz Friday afternoon, including a five ball endurance contest, long distance passing, combat juggling, joggling races and basketball on unicycles. Almost all were team games, and the "best" competitors were clearly not those who showed individual brilliance but who entered into the spirit of things most freely.

 

Sem Abraham from Holland and Reinhold Leppert from Germany seemed unbeatable on their giraffe unicycles during the basketball match. They dunked point after point through the rims, created by volunteers who circled their arms while sitting on other volunteers' shoulders.

 

In the three-legged joggling race, one team entered as a pink elephant. The start of the sudden-death five ball marathon was delayed several minutes because the competitors were falling over each other in mirth, sparked by the antics of professional lunatic Gerard Estrem. The culprit insisted on wearing a ludicrous pair of spectacles and juggling the fifth ball from one side of his mouth to the other. The winner managed all of 43 seconds before scattering the balls all over the arena in his delight at being the last person juggling.

 

In an unexpected victory ceremony, organizers awarded "pocket juggling sets" to the winners. The rewards for excellence included three balls (beads), three rings (washers), three clubs (game board figures) and three torches (matches), all packed in matchboxes.

 

The games and other convention activities were broadcast on German national television and in America on a national nightly news spot.

 

Films courtesy of Karl-Heinz Ziethen rounded out Friday's activities. Saturday's highlight was a parade through downtown Frankfurt that dissolved into individual street shows about halfway through its route. The pedestrian precinct was packed with shoppers who quickly became spectators.

 

With so many good jugglers, it was difficult to produce a public show. Eventually it was decided to allocate each of the main nationalities present 20 minutes of stage time. The hall was packed with 400 jugglers and about 500 other spectators. The atmosphere was absolutely electric even before it started. The show was deemed excellent by everyone, as MC's Paul Keast and Uli Meister kept things flowing smoothly in three languages. Perhaps the most resounding applause of the evening went to Martin Schweitzke, whose poise and polish with five balls was impressive in its simplicity.