No self-respecting sporting event would dream of launching without a cultural festival these days, and so it is with the European Championships which kicks off in Glasgow in six days.

The eleven-day event bring together existing individual championships into one multi-sport event for the first time with 4,500 athletes taking part. Glasgow will host the aquatics, cycling, golf, gymnastics, rowing and triathlon while Berlin hosts the athletics.

Spectators will have plenty to see as the sporting events take place beyond Glasgow. The rowing and triathlon can be found in North Lanarkshire, the diving in Edinburgh, and the open water swimming will take place in Loch Lomond.

But beyond all that running and jumping there will be an extensive arts programme called Festival 2018 featuring Scottish artists, international companies and innovative art work.

From the beginning of the championships to the end, there will be parties, music, entertainment and spectacles for the everyone to enjoy.

We have selected the best sights to see in Glasgow this August, ranging from music performances to walking theatre tours – and it all begins with the Great Big Opening Party at Glasgow’s George Square.

  • Great Big Opening Party

August 1

George Square at 4pm

£15/7.50 + booking fee

George Square will host the launch party on the day before the first sporting event. With doors opening at 4pm next Saturday, the evening will be packed with some of the biggest names in the Scottish music scene. Nina Nesbitt will kick off the party, along with 2017 BBC Scot Album of the Year winner Elephant Sessions and the Glasgow/London duo Sacred Paws. Finishing with a fireworks display, George Square will light up the city and start the championships with a bang.

  • National Youth Partnership Performance

August 7–9

The Old Fruit Market at 8pm, mid-day and 3pm, £5

The festival will celebrate Scotland’s talented young people with youth groups performing. The largest project will be The National Youth Partnership Performance. This will see Scotland’s four youth performing arts companies – National Youth Choir of Scotland, National Youth Orchestra of Scotland, Scottish Youth Theatre and Scottish Youth Dance – join with a community cast to produce their first collaborative piece called Tell Us Who You Are. The piece explores young people’s voices and contrasts with the voices of young people after the First World War. Being performed at Glasgow’s Old Fruitmarket, from the August 7-9.

  • The People's Pianos

August 2-12

Locations across Glasgow

Free

After the success of the People’s Pianos at the Commonwealth Games 2014, they are returning to entertain the crowds. There will be 22 pianos popping up across Glasgow throughout the championships. These pianos can be used by the public for free, but if you aren’t musically talented then you won’t miss out because you can bring things to decorate them with instead. On August 12, City Halls will host the Lids Open Day, where people have the opportunity, no matter their age or ability, to play on two Steinway Concert Grand Pianos.

  • Beats Per Minute

August 2-9

George square at 10am-9:30pm, every 30 minutes

Free

Step into the world of an athlete at George Square’s geodesic dome. In this 30-minute immersive experience visitors will be surrounded by projections and listen to an intense soundscape, while being strapped to a vibrating backpack. Feel the athletes’ heartbeats as you come to understand their dreams and their adrenalin-fuelled sporting achievements. This audio-visual experience is free and runs throughout the festival. The Beats Per Minute Showdown on August 11 and 12 (tickets £12.50) is an even more thrilling experience, with surprise performances and a DJ party set. This event has limited capacity and is ticketed, but tickets are still on sale.

  • Glasgow through the decades: A Photography Walking Tour

August 4

Begins at Glasgow Cross at 11am-1pm

Free

This walking tour presents a look at the inner east of Glasgow over the decades. A history in images, this photographic tour is the perfect way for visitors and locals to explore part of the city. In groups of ten, the tour will cover a two-mile radius including Glasgow Cross, the Saltmarket, the Barras and Trongate. The work of leading Scottish documentary photographers will be displayed, including that of Thomas Annan, Chris Leslie and Oscar Marzaroli. The tours will only run on August 4, so be sure to reserve your space.

  • Hidden Footprints (A Moment's Peace Theatre Company)

August 11

Begins at City Halls at mid-day-1pm

Ticketed

Glasgow’s Women’s Creative Company have put together a promenade performance in the Merchant City. The performance follows the footsteps of women from the past and features significant areas where women have before campaigned for a variety of causes. With spoken-word performances, this moving piece looks a Glasgow’s history from a female perspective. Part of the tour involves the group renaming well-known streets in Glasgow after women rather than men – a thought-provoking section that draws attention to the male dominance of the city. Hidden Footprints will take place on the final day of the European Championships and is open to all.

  • InTarsi

August 7-8

Go Live! At the Green at 5pm

Free

Glasgow welcomes the Catalan-based company Compania de Circo for their contemporary circus show InTarsi which showcases four acrobats who reflect on the intricate web of human relations through physical and metaphorical dance. It is particularly relevant as Glasgow builds upon its relationship with co-host Berlin and showcases a variety of international companies. There are no clowns or fire-breathers in this contemporary take on circus, but routines of acrobatic skill and sweeping dance sequences.

  • Celtic Connections Closing Party

August 12

George Square at 5pm

£18

To celebrate the end of the European Championships, Celtic Connections presents some of Scotland’s greatest musical talents alongside international artists. With an impressive line-up including Edinburgh based Shooglenifty – a six-piece Celtic fusion band – and international artist Fatoumata Diawara, this party is sure to have George Square bouncing.

Visit festival2018glasgow.com