Preparations for the European Youth Olympic Festival are brought up for discussion
Today, the Coordination Commission meeting was held at the Ministry of Youth & Sport in relation to the preparation for the XV summer European Youth Olympic Festival to be staged in Baku in July 2019.
The meeting was attended by Azad Rahimov, Minister of Youth and Sport of the Republic of Azerbaijan, and at the same time (names to be added); Djordje Visacki, Chair of the Coordination Commission of the European Olympic Committees (EOC) and Secretary General of the Serbian National Olympic Committee; Líney Rut Halldórsdóttir, member of the EOC Coordination Commission and Secretary General of the Icelandic National Olympic Committee; and Said Fazlagić, member of the EOC Coordination Commission and Secretary General of the National Olympic Committee of Bosnia and Herzegovina who got full update on the current state of preparation for the Youth Festival.
During the meeting the participants discussed the work undertaken by the ‘Baku 2019’ Organizing Committee to date in preparation for the 2019 summer European Youth Olympic Festival including the sport competition schedule, the status of Athletes Village, NOC engagement plans, the volunteer program and other important issues.
It should be noted that during their stay in Baku, the officials of the European Olympic Committees have also visited the National Gymnastics Arena, Baku Aquatics Center, Baku Sports Hall, Athletes Village and other sports venues.
The European Youth Olympic Festival will take place in Baku on 20-28 July 2019. The opening ceremony of the Festival is scheduled for 21 July. In total, over 3600 athletes and team officials from 50 European countries are expected to visit Azerbaijan to join the Festival’s competitions. The competitions consisting of 10 sports (Artistic Gymnastics, Athletics, Basketball, Cycling, Handball, Judo, Swimming, Tennis, Volleyball, and Wrestling) will involve over 2500 volunteers.
Additional information:
• The idea of the European Youth Olympic Festival was brought to life in 1990 by Jacques Rogge, former president of the European Olympic Committees with the aim to provide a possibility for young athletes to get to know the Olympic Movement and learn about the Olympic values and ideals.
• This Festival is the top multisport event for young European athletes between ages 14 and 18.
• The First Festival was held in 1991 in Brussels, Belgium.
• There are both winter and summer editions, which take place in two-year cycles, in odd years.
• EYOF belongs to European Olympic Committees (EOC) and is organized on behalf of EOC, under the patronage of the International Olympic Committee.
• EYOF allows Europe to keep in step with the tradition of other continents (e.g. Asian Youth Games, the Pan American Youth Games).
• The country hosting EYOF gets the right to participate in all the competitions without passing the pre-qualification round.
