China hosts the World Yo-Yo Contest for the first time

The World Yo-Yo Contest, the largest gathering of competitive yo-yo players and fans worldwide, wrapped up in Shanghai on Sunday. It's the first time the event has been held in China.

The four-day event, which lasted from August 9 to 12, included over 500 contestants from the four continents of Asia, Europe, the Americas and Oceania.

12-year-old Terrance Want from Canada has been doing the sport for about five years. He says it allows him to be creative and that is what he likes about it.

"If you do one thing, it will be really boring. So if you do many possibilities, like other types of tricks, that’ll be really fun."

Yi Chenghao, a Chinese contestant, normally practices for up to six hours nonstop every day before a contest.

"If you don’t have perseverance and confidence, you can’t make it," he said.

Hironori Mii, head judge of the International Yo-Yo Federation (IYYF) noted, "We think there are more players in China than the rest of the world. Their player base is one of the biggest, and there are so many good new players coming up."

At the finals, players in each of the five main divisions, which were designated 1A to 5A, were given three minutes to perform their best yo-yo skills in front of judges and fans.