The National Fireworks Championship will be held at the Puerto Vallarta Sports Stadium (in front of the Sheridan Buganvilias Resort and Towers) on May 30, as part of the city’s 90th anniversary celebrations.

This is a prelude to the International Fireworks Symposium scheduled to be held in Puerto Vallarta in April of 2009.

Starting at 6:00 pm, this free event will be the largest fireworks display in Puerto Vallarta’s history with over four hours of pyrotechnics competitions.

Eight participating fireworks manufacturers from Mexico City, Sornora, Tlaxcala and Puerto Vallarta will each have a 20 minute extravaganza to wow the crowds .. and the judges … while competing for prizes totaling $200,000 pesos.

This National Competition is a dry run for the International Fireworks Symposium next year.

Since it’s inception in Montreal in 92 when attendees from more than 20 nations met, there have been 10 very successful fireworks Symposia,

• Montreal Canada 1992,
• Vancouver Canada 1994,
• Walt Disney World Orlando 1996,
• Halifax Canada 1998,
• Naples Italy 2000,
• Walt Disney World Orlando 2001,
• Valencia Spain 2003,
• Shiga Japan 2005,
• Berlin Germany 2006
• and the 10th anniversary back in Montreal 2007

and now… Puerto Vallarta, Mexico in 2009!

Photo credit – Mark Callanan

The Symposia were brought to life by CERL, the Canadian Explosives Research Laboratory. After five Symposia CERL turned the administration over to a non-profit International Symposium on Fireworks Society, which continued on with the organization of the 6th Symposium at Walt Disney World .

This series of Symposia has become the world’s premiere international gathering of the pyrotechnic industry. Each Symposium focuses on bringing together individuals of diverse pyrotechnic background, to provide a fertile atmosphere in which to see the newest technology, to trade experience and ideas on ways to enhance the industry and to move the science forward.

The emphasis of the Symposia is on the presentation of papers and the discussion of topics dealing with the safety, scientific, engineering, artistic, and regulatory aspects of fireworks and other pyrotechnics associated with entertainment and celebration on a global basis.

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