Azerbaijani athletes leave for Rio de Janeiro

/By Azernews/

By Amina Nazarli

Last night Azerbaijani athletes have left for one of the most popular, thrilling and memorable events of this year --  2016 Summer Olympic Games to be held in Rio.

A solemn farewell ceremony for the national athletes was held at the Heydar Aliyev International Airport, where representatives of the sports community and sports fans took part in to wish good luck to the athletes.

The Azerbaijani team will be represented at 31st Summer Olympic Games and 15th Summer Paralympic Games in Rio with 56 athletes in 18 sports. This year the country will be represented in four sports, including triathlon, archery, cycling and canoe slalom, for the first time.

Thirty-six of 56 athletes will participate in Olympic Games for the first time. During the Olympiad, the Azerbaijani team will be accompanied by 34 coaches, six doctors, physiotherapists and technicians.

Head Coach of Azerbaijani gymnastics team, Mariana Vasilyeva noted that she expects very good performance of the national gymnasts, saying that the main goal of the athletes is reaching the final.  

“After that, of course, our goal is to win a medal and elevate our flag in Rio de Janeiro,” she told Trend. “We prepared very well for the Olympic Games. Azerbaijani people expect good results from us. We will do everything possible to please the people of Azerbaijan.”

National pride of Azerbaijan, gymnast Marina Durunda believes that she will be able to please the Azerbaijani people, noting that participation in Olympics put on great responsibility on each athlete.

“I will take part in the Olympic Games for the first time. To take part in these Games is the dream of every athlete. Naturally, participation in such events puts a great responsibility on the athlete. The athlete should be experienced enough. I believe I can please the people of Azerbaijan," she told Trend.

Wrestling is another sport where high hopes pinned on the Azerbaijani athletes. With 14 athletes, including six freestyle, five Greco-roman and three female wrestlers, the national wrestling team is sure to reach good results.    

Twenty three year old wrestler Togrul Alasgarov, who was named the best men athlete of Europe in 2015, said that the athletes are going to the Olympics with high expectations, as they are well prepared for the competition.  

“All of our athletes going to the Olympic Games are professionals. We will do everything possible to return to the country with medals,” he emphasized.

European and World champion, Rasul Chunayev mentioned that the team had passed a high-level training. “We will have training in Brazil for some days. I will do my best to return the motherland with gold medal,” he said. 

Two-time Olympic silver medalist, Greco-roman wrestler Rovshan Bayramov emphasized that the team has well prepaid for the Olympics. 

Head Coach of Azerbaijani Greco-Roman team Jamshid Kheyrabadi, in turn, said that the team targets at least five medals. “However, we should not forget that, Olympic Games is the arena for the strongest sportsmen. Our wrestlers will do the best at the competition. We want to repeat success in London Olympics,” he said. 

Earlier Chingiz Huseynzade, Vice-President of the National Olympic Committee claimed that the national athletes will be able to bring home at least 10-12 medals from the 31st Summer Olympic Games.

“Almost half of the national team can win medals. We believe that the number and denomination of the medals will be greater than at the London Olympics,” he told journalists.

The 31st Summer Olympic Games will be held in Rio on August 5-21, while the 15th Summer Paralympic Games is scheduled for September 7-18.

A record number of countries will participate in a record number of sports. More than 10,500 athletes from 206 National Olympic Committees, including first time entrants Kosovo and South Sudan, are scheduled to take part.

With 306 sets of medals, the Games will feature 28 Olympic sports — including rugby sevens and golf, which were added by the International Olympic Committee in 2009.

These sporting events will take place at 33 venues in the host city and at 5 venues in the cities of Brazilian Sao Paulo, Belo Horizonte, Salvador, Brasilia and Manaus cities.