"February, which started with Youth Week and ended with Sports Week, was very successful for both areas. Especially, the great victories of our athletes made each of us happy."
Minister of Youth and Sports of Azerbaijan, European Gymnastics President, Farid Gayibov has told this while evaluating February, Idman.biz reports.
He said in President’s Note that the most significant event of February was undoubtedly the very important and historic choice of our people for the continuation of victories: "The confident victory of Mr. Ilham Aliyev in the extraordinary presidential elections of the Republic of Azerbaijan is also the victory of our youth and athletes. Our athletes and young people who actively participated in the elections expressed their gratitude to the victorious leader of the victorious nation by actively participating in the election. Even our athletes participating in competitions and trainings in different countries went to the embassies and took part in voting. I thank every young person and every athlete for their activity. I am proud to be on the list of Government members reconfirmed by the head of our state after the swearing-in, and we will continue our #birkimibirlikdə activities with more responsibility to justify the trust shown again."
According to him, the most successful sports news of February came from Romania and Bulgaria: "Our Greco-Roman wrestlers Murad Mammadov, Nihat Mammadli, Hasrat Jafarov, as well as our female wrestlers Maria Stadnik and Alyona Kolesnik won the title of European champion. Our national Greco-Roman wrestling team achieved its best result in the history of the European championships in terms of medals (3 gold, 2 silver and 1 bronze) and won 3 gold medals in a continental championship for the first time. Another great news came from weightlifting after 12 years. Our athlete Dadash Dadashbeyli, who is stronger than all his competitors in push-ups, deadlifts, and the sum of the two movements, won 3 gold medals and won the European Championship. This success is a clear example of the revival of weightlifting in our country. The next successes came from our gymnasts. Our sports gymnast Nikita Simonov won a gold medal at the World Cup held in Germany. Another of our athletes, Mikhail Malkin, won the World Cup in trampoline gymnastics and tumbling in Baku. By the way, Mikhail Malkin was elected the best gymnast of Europe for 2023, and his coach Adil Huseynzade was also elected the best coach of the continent."
He congratulated the Qarabag FK for achieving a historic success in the playoffs stage of the UEFA Europa League, overcoming the difficult barrier of Braga and advancing to the 1/8 finals: "To our team, which showed real determination in the 120-minute fight, against Bayer, one of the strongest clubs in Germany. I wish you luck in the game. Speaking of football, I wish good luck to our national team, which will compete with Sweden, Slovakia and Estonia in Group 1 of C League in the 2024-2025 UEFA Nations League draw. We had the joy of victory thanks to our men's basketball players and women's handball players in the team competitions. Our national basketball team won a convincing victory over the Kosovo national team in the qualifying round of the WC-2027. Our national handball team won against Lithuania in Baku in the qualifying round of the European Championship to be held in 2024."
The minister also emphasized that our country hosted a number of prestigious events during the month: "Trampoline Gymnastics World Cup was held in Baku for the 7th time. Also, our sports fans had the opportunity to watch the Grand Slam competition in judo, the international tournament in badminton and other competitions from the stands."
He said that the Sports Week, which started on February 27 on the occasion of March 5 - Physical Education and Sports Day, continues with interesting events: "A historic event among these events was the first time we started the Khankendi - Baku ultra-marathon. The participants of the ultra-marathon, which started from the city of Khankendi on February 29, covered 380 km and competed in 5 stages to reach the finish in Baku, and yesterday we welcomed and awarded the winners of the ultra-marathon at the finish in Baku. Traditionally, our meeting with Azerbaijani athletes and their coaches, who have successfully represented our country in continental and world championships and prestigious international competitions, continued in February. We listened to the impressions of our athletes about the competitions they participated in, the victories they won, and discussed their preparations for future competitions with the coaches of the national teams. We met with the residents of Kurdamir, Ujar and Zardab regions at the traditional reception and were interested in the issues that concern them. Interest in national sports is increasing every year, not only in our country, but all over the world. I participated in the VI World Ethno Sport Forum held in Antalya, Turkiye. In addition to the discussions in the panel sessions of the Forum held under the motto "Revival of traditional sports", I had bilateral meetings with the president of the World Ethnosport Confederation Necmettin Bilal Erdogan and my ministerial colleagues from a number of countries. By the way, chovgan, our national sport, has already become official at the international level and received the status it deserves. The General Assembly of the newly established International Casting Federation took place in our capital, and elections to the governing bodies were also held. I hope that the activity of the federation will encourage the spread and development of this ancient sport all over the world."
Gayibov also mentioned that a gym was put into use in Turkan settlement: "The gym building has facilities for holding competitions and exercises in the universal gym, as well as wrestling, judo, taekwondo, boxing, karate, and aerobics exercises in other halls. Outdoor exercise equipment, chess and basketball courts have also been installed in the courtyard of the complex. I hope that Turkan residents will be able to use this opportunity effectively. Recently, we got acquainted with the activities of the Training Center for national judo teams and were interested in the training process of the athletes. I also took part in giving certificates to coaches participating in the International Judo Federation(IJF) Academy program. I recommend this activity to all federations in the study of international experience and training of specialists. As part of my visit to Lankaran, I got acquainted with the activities of the Lankaran Sports Club, exchanged ideas with the coaches, watched the training process of the athletes, and talked with them. Organizing the activity of sports departments individually by experts in the regions is a promising activity in terms of the physical health of children and young people and the development of future champions. The various tournaments we hold among employees of state institutions are not only interesting but also important. We have already organized swimming and billiard competitions for hundreds of employees. It is planned to organize 18 more tournaments and 26 more tournaments in the coming year. Such competitions are very useful in terms of increasing the popularity of sports and promoting a healthy lifestyle, and I invite everyone working in government institutions to actively participate in these competitions."
Farid Gayibov called: "The number of people doing sports in the country is increasing. This is the result of joint activities and the work done. The fact that 68-year-old Huseynagha Safarov, one of the participants of the Khankendi-Baku ultra-marathon, was among those who reached the finish line yesterday once again showed that it is possible to do sports at any age regardless of age, I invite everyone to do sports."
Idman.biz
