BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 2. We believe that there will be more licenses for the Olympics, Azerbaijani Youth and Sports Minister Farid Gayibov said, Trend reports via Idman.biz.
"The past months have succeeded each other; the successes are increasing day by day. April was remembered for mass participation, sports achievements, and the strengtheningucture," the Minister noted.
He said in the "Minister's Point of View" that two important events took place for the infrastructure of Ganja, the second largest city of our country: "First of all, the head of our state, Mr. Ilham Aliyev, opened the Ganja Sports Palace, which was created at the highest level for various sports. got acquainted with the conditions. This sports palace, which is the largest sports center of the Caucasus and the region, has every opportunity for training, competition, and recreation of athletes. I believe that future champions will grow up in this palace, and many local and international competitions will be held. I would like to mention that many competitions for the III CIS Games, which will be held in our country next year, will be organized here. In addition, the head of the country also laid the foundation for Ganja City Stadium.
The Minister also emphasized that it has become a tradition for Baku to host international competitions: "The Rhythmic Gymnastics World Cup, where 116 gymnasts from 41 countries competed in Baku, was organized at a high level this time. At the event held at the National Gymnastics Arena, the new mascots of the federation—an elegant gazelle and a brave fox—were presented to the public. Another international competition, the Olympic qualifying tournament for wrestling, was also organized at the NGA at a high level. In the European Olympic Qualifying Tournament, five of our freestyle wrestlers—Aliabbas Rzazade (57 kg), Haji Aliyev (65 kg), Turan Bayramov (74 kg), Osman Nurmagomedov (86 kg), and Georgy Meshvildishvili (125 kg)—qualified for Paris 2024. For the first time in history, we will be represented at the Olympics in game sports. Azerbaijan's national women's 3x3 basketball team brought us this joy by winning the license-type tournament organized in Hong Kong. We got another license for the Paris Summer Olympics in academic rowing. Our athlete, Diana Dymchenko, secured a license to the Olympics by taking second place in the competition. For the last time, Azerbaijan was represented in the rowing sport at the Summer Olympic Games held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. By the first day of May, our athletes had increased the number of licenses to 18. I congratulate the canoe and rowing, basketball, and wrestling federations on their new licenses. We believe that the number of qualifications in the next two months will increase."
Gayibov noted that April was remembered for many firsts and new records: "Our judoka Hidayat Heydarov achieved a new record in Azerbaijani judo by winning the title of European champion for the 4th time. Another one of our judokas, Eljan Hajiyev, won the gold medal at the Continental Championship for the first time in the 90 kg weight class. The European championship of our chess player, Ulviyya Fataliyeva, was one of the first. With this success, Ulviyya went down in history as the first Azerbaijani chess player to win the title of European champion. Our tumbling and trampoline players achieved first place with their successful performances in the European Championship. Our tumbling team won the title of European champion. For the first time in the history of gymnastics, we won a medal at the European Championship. This success was achieved by Nikita Simonov (silver) in hoops. Our team also performed successfully in the synchronized movements of teenagers and girls on the trampoline, and it was the first European medal for our country won by trampoline girls. Our tumbling team also won our first gold medal in the European Championship."
The minister also said that the tradition of meeting with Azerbaijani athletes and their coaches, who have successfully represented our country in continental and world championships and prestigious international competitions, continues during the month. Rovshan Najaf, President of the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan (SOCAR), was elected the new head of the organization at the next report-election of the Association of Azerbaijan Football Federations, and Rashad Rasullu was elected the new executive vice president of the federation at the general meeting of the Azerbaijan Judo Federation. I wish success to both federations in their further activities."
Gayibov also announced that Baku is a contender for the title of Sports Capital in 2026: "Our city has already been nominated, and representatives of the Evaluation Commission for the World Sports Capital Award (ACES) visited Baku last month. They were interested in the activities of several sports facilities and participated in the presentation. I had a meeting with the representatives of the commission. We talked with them about the work done for sports in our country, the successes achieved, and the sports potential of Baku."
He said that responsible and productive two months are waiting for our national team to arrive in Paris: "The consecutive successes achieved by Azerbaijani athletes in the first four months of the year encourage us to look more optimistically at tomorrow. I believe that our athletes will continue the Olympic year with victories and will keep our flag high".
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