Armenian PM attends European Youth Olympic Festival opening ceremony
On the margins of his working visit to Georgia, Prime Minister Hovik Abrahamyan attended the opening of the European Youth Olympic Festival on July 26. In anticipation of the opening ceremony, the Premier called at the Olympic village where he met with the delegation of Armenian athletes. Hovik Abrahamyan said he had come to encourage the athletes and wish them sporting victories. “I am happy for this meeting. I have come to wish you every success and victories. At the same time, I would like to take this opportunity to learn of your problems and offer my assistance,” the Prime Minister said. Inspired with the Premier’s presence, the members of the Armenian delegation said they would do everything to win medals. Mindful of the importance of developing sports in Armenia, Hovik Abrahamyan said to be prepared to discuss any appropriate proposal. Minister of Sports and Youth Affairs Gabriel Ghazaryan said that the Prime Minister’s presence inspired the team, reminding that at the Premier’s initiative, AMD170 million was allocated from the State budget to get sports equipment for sports schools and individual federations in 2015, which is of paramount importance to the development of sport in the country. Gabriel Ghazaryan noted that many well-known European athletes have participated in this festival. Held every two years, the festival is attended by delegations from 49 countries this year. The 13th European Olympic Festival will be held in Tbilisi from 26 July to 1 August. Armenia will appear in 6 events out of 9 featuring on the program: 6 - judo, 3 – gymnastics, 3 - athletics, 3 –swimming, 4 - tennis and 3 – cycling. Altogether, 22 athletes will be representing Armenia. On the same day, on behalf of Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili, an official dinner was offered to the heads of the delegations in attendance of the European Youth Olympic Festival, the Government's Press Service reports.
