Beyblade World Championship 2012

The World BEYBLADE Championship (previously known as the BEYBLADE National Championship) is a soon-to-be concluded worldwide Beyblade championship that first launched in 2011. It will conclude on Sunday, March 25, 2012 at Corus Quay on Toronto, Canada.

Similar to the previous world championship held in 2005, this however, is based off of the Metal Saga while following the same general format. Bladers from countries all around the world compete in various tournaments and the winning Blader becomes the representative of their aforemetioned country. They are then sent to one location (in this case Toronto, Canada) where the No. 1 Blader in the world will be crowned as they fight to compete for that title.

Overview
The world championship was announced on March 22, 2011 by The Wall Street Journal in a post provided by Alexandra Cheney; pubslished at 10:00 P.M. EST. One such paragraph, included this informatio.

As time passed, more information surfaced, such as one instance where Hasbro has said and quote, "players will have the oppurtunity to compete head-to-head against the greatest Beybladers from around the world in the premiere World BEYBLADE Championship! A series of local BEYBLADE tournaments in each market and virtual battles in BeybladeBattles.com will test players' skills and strategy as they represent their region in this unique global competition."

According to The Wall Street Journal, 40 countries would be participating and 10 winners will be sent to Toronto at Corus Quay on March 23, 2012; to face off and battle to become the best Beyblader in the world.

During the course of the tournaments, parts that were not yet released outside of Asia were banned. At the time, it was for the then-new, 4D System.

Beyblade Battle Series

 * California on August 13, at Kmart
 * Dallas, Texas on August 27, at Walmart
 * Miami, Florida on September 10, at Walmart
 * New York, New York on September 24, at Javits Center
 * Bohemia, New York on September 17, at Kmart
 * Totawa, New Jersey on September 24, at Toys R Us

Worldwide

 * Germany: May 28, 2011 at all Toys R Us for Kids Day
 * France: Late October at KidExpo 2011
 * Italy: February 2011 in its capital, Rome.
 * Finals: March 23, 2012 at Corus Quay in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Canada

 * Name: Luqman
 * Age: 11
 * Bio: Canadian Beyblade winner Luqman has been having fun battling with Beyblades for over 2 years now, ever since he found out about Beyblade: Metal Fusion. Luqman is often amazed that he went from a Beyblader who battled in a park to a representative of Canada and is excited to meet champions from other countries!

United States

 * Name: Zakiah
 * Age: 11
 * Bio: From the United States of America, Zakiah has been Beyblading for 7 years now. His favourite Beyblader is Gingka because he's the Best Blader in the World, with great will to battle with his partner Galaxy Pegasus!

Mexico

 * Name: Mauricio
 * Age: 11
 * Bio: Mauricio has been battling Beyblades in his home country of Mexico for 2 and a half years! His favourite Bey spirit is Gemios Fireblaze and he's excited to come to Canada and compete!

Sweden

 * Name: Dennis
 * Age: 14
 * Bio: Dennis has been battling Beyblades for 2 years now in his home country of Sweden and his favourite Bey spirit is Virgo because of its endurance!

Norway

 * Name: Phillip
 * Age: 11
 * Bio: National Beyblade winner Philip is from the country of Norway and has been battling for 2 years now. Philip's favourite Bey spirit is Earth Eagle and he is looking foward to the competition!

Latvia

 * Name: Kristofers
 * Age: 11
 * Bio: National Beyblade Champion Kristofers originates from the city of Riga, the capital and largest city in the country of Latvia. He has been battling Beyblades for about a year and besides his favourite character being Gingka, his favourite Bey is Ray Striker!

United Kingdom

 * Name: Jack
 * Age: 10
 * Bio: UK champion Jack loves outdoor activities such as riding his bike and scooter, flying model aircrafts and of course battling with his Beyblades! Also an avid football (soccer) player, Jack is looking forward to playing for the title of World's Best Blader!

Denmark

 * Name: Hamza
 * Age: 11
 * Bio: Devoted Beyblade player Hamza has been battling Beyblades ever since they came out in stores and became popular in his home country of Denmark. Hamza's favourite Bey spirits are both Earth Eagle and Aries and he's very excited at the chance to go to Toronto!

Belgium

 * Name: Robbe Geerts
 * Age: 8
 * Bio: Robbe has been Blading for over two years and loves the whole game! With his favorite Bey spirits, he will for sure use his full potential to compete in the final battle as No. 1 Blader!!

Germany

 * Name: Aleksandar
 * Age: 9
 * Bio: Germany's national winner, Aleksandar, has been battling Beyblades for 2 years and his favourite Bey spirits are Burn Fireblaze and Thunder Libra. When he isn't working on his battle skills, Aleksandar enjoys playing soccer, table tennis, practicing karate, and listening to hip hop!

France

 * Name: Yassin
 * Age: 13
 * Bio: Yassin is France's National Beyblade Champion. He has been battling Beyblades for 2 years and his favorite top is Earth Eagle. Although he trained several times with his brother and friends, he never thought he could become the French National Champion. He's now looking forward to competing in the World Championship!

Slovenia

 * Name: Gal
 * Age: 9
 * Bio: Slovenia's national winner Gal has been battling Beyblades for almost 2 years now! His favourite Bey spirit is Pegasus and really loves Beyblades. Even his little sister is starting to battle!

Portugal

 * Name: Eric
 * Age: 9
 * Bio: Eric is excited to be the Portuguese National Champion. His favorite top is Burn Fireblaze because it is very strong. He has been a Beyblade fan since 2002, when Hasbro launched the Beyblade tops for the first time. He practices almost every day at school with his school mates, so he is ready for the World Championship!

Spain

 * Name: Simón
 * Age: 10
 * Bio: Simón is Spain's national winner!

Italy

 * Name: Marco
 * Age: 12
 * Bio: Italy's Beyblade winner Marco, is an avid Blader who has been battling for over 3 years. His favourite Beyblades are Twisted Tempo and Hades Kerbecs and another fun fact is that Marco is an accomplished pianist and has already composed his first piano piece!

Turkey

 * Name: Onuralp
 * Age: 10
 * Bio: Turkey's champion Onuralp has been playing with Beyblades ever since it launched in his home town. His favourite Beyblade character is Kyoya and his favourite spirit is his best friend! Onuralp is looking foward to the competition!

Russia

 * Name: Vladislav
 * Age: 10
 * Bio: Russia's Beyblade Champion!

Japan

 * Name: Ryo
 * Age: 11
 * Bio: Ryo is Japan's national champion! He has been playing with Beyblades for two and half years and his favourite top is Diablo Pegasus II. He is so excited to battle with his fellow Beybladers from around the world!

Hong Kong

 * Name: Peter
 * Age: 12
 * Bio: Hong Kong's National Beyblade Representative Peter has been battling Beyblades for the last 2 years. His favourite Beyblade is Basalt Horogium CH120RB.

Thailand

 * Name: Pattara
 * Age: 13
 * Bio: Thailand's Beyblade National Champion Pattara has been battling Beyblades for more than 2 years and his favourite Beyblade is Basalt Horogium.

Philippines

 * Name: Neil
 * Age: 9
 * Bio: Representing the Philippines, National Champion Neil has been an avid Beyblade battler for almost 2 years now and his favourite Beyblade is Virgo!

Singapore

 * Name: Rueben
 * Age: 8
 * Bio: Rueben is Singapore's National Champion. He has been battling with Beyblades for more than 2 years and his favourite top is Big Bang Pegasis!

Indonesia

 * Name: Muhammad
 * Age: 14
 * Bio: As the Indonesia National Champion, Muhammad has been battling Beyblades for nearly one year. His favourite Beyblade is Gravity Perseus and he is looking forward to the World Championship!

Australia

 * Name: Dheeran
 * Age: 10
 * Bio: Dheeran won the Australian National Championship and has been battling for 2 years. His favourite Bey spirit is Rock Leone. He also loves telling jokes with his mates and swimming (which he does competitively). Dheeran was born in Toronto so he is looking forward to coming back for the World Championship!

New Zealand

 * Name: Finlay
 * Age: 10
 * Bio: Finlay won the National Championship in New Zealand and has been battling for 2 years. His favourite Bey spirit is Leone. He's really excited that he became his country's champion and to be heading to Canada for the World Championship. He also has his own channel on YouTube: kyoyafangrockleone. Let it rip!!!

Live webcast schedule

 * 12:00 - 12:15: Opening Ceremony
 * 1:00 - 2:00: Round 1 - Pool Play
 * 2:00 - 3:00: Round 2 - Pool Play
 * 4:00 - 4:15: Quarter-finals
 * 4:30 - 5:00: Semi-finals
 * 5:00 - 5:30: Finals
 * 5:30 - 6:00: Crowning the Champion

Trivia

 * Originally, the finals were to be held at the New York Comic Con on March 25, 2012, it was then pushed back two days.
 * Originally, 22 countries were to participate in the championship.
 * Italy had over 4,000 attendees in over 100 cities with over 30 million contacts, 50 interviews and breaking news on radio and television. In January 2011, Italy has 15 regions, 1,000 attendes with 15 regional winners. Its representative was decided on February 2011 with an average of 1,500 attendees.