Closing ceremony of first European Games shows Baku’s closeness to Europe

By Aygun Badalova

The closing ceremony of the first European Games in Baku showed joy filled hearts of Azerbaijani citizens, Azerbaijani Youth and Sports Minister Azad Rahimov said at the press conference June 29.

“It showed that Azerbaijani people want to be closer to the world,” he said. “The ceremony also showed Europe’s closeness to Baku and Baku’s closeness to Europe.”

"I did not expect that our team could rank second in the overall team standings,” he said. “We have 56 medals. Our athletes have contributed to the history of the country’s sports.”

Rahimov expects that Azerbaijan will host a lot of major sporting events, which would please and unite people.

"The strongest athletes participated in the European Games,” he said. “Some 12 of 16 (Olympic) kinds of sports were qualifying in nature. This is a great opportunity for the athletes. Nobody wants to lose it. The strongest athletes participated in these 12 kinds of sports."

More than 100 Olympic champions and world champions participated in the European Games.

/By Trend/