History in the making
Baku 2015
ISSUE 2 SEPTEMBER 2014
Especially produced for Baku 2015
History in the making The 1st European Games Issue 2, September 2014
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IN THIS
ISSUE
September 2014
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Azerbaijan builds for the future
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Azerbaijan’s heritage inspires fresh new look
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Baku 2015 volunteers will be history makers
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1 Year To Go Celebrations in Baku
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Creating the next generation of event organisers
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Celebrating the Baku 2015 European Games in Cannes
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Karate - big in Japan and now in Europe
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The age of the bespoke Games
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Baku 2015 gets thumbs up from Olympic greats
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Testing for success
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History in the making The 1st European Games Issue 2, September 2014
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Sky’s the limit as
Azerbaijan builds for the future
In just two decades, Azerbaijan has put itself on the map as a country capable of hosting major sporting events. As preparations continue for the biggest event to come to the country, Duncan Mackay
reports on how Azerbaijan under President Ilham Aliyev is building for the future.
Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev is a man who realises how important sport is in helping a country build its brand and reputation. Azerbaijan has earned a reputation among many international federations as a good and reliable partner when it comes to staging major events. “We have been an independent nation for only 22 years, and have already achieved so much in this time,” said Aliyev. “We have held numerous international events in Azerbaijan, including European and world championships. Our sportsmen achieved good results on the international arena.” But staging the first-ever European Games will be its biggest test yet. “Azerbaijan has shown just how much of a developing country it is,” said Aliyev. “In recent years, we have hosted the
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Women’s Under-17 FIFA World Cup in 2012, along with the Eurovision Song Contest and we are very excited to host the first ever European Games here in Baku in 2015. “Because of its strategic geographic position, Azerbaijan is the bridge between Asia and Europe, and we are excited to communicate this importance throughout many of the important events in the country. “This is a great responsibility, a big challenge. At the same time, it is an opportunity for us to present our country. We plan to organise these Games to the highest possible standards.” The number of big events coming to Azerbaijan has been accompanied by an impressive upgrading of the country’s infrastructure, including new sports facilities, an improved road network and bolstered phone and online communications. “There are so many plans in place for the future, a very important one being the construction of modern Olympic centres and broadband internet throughout the country,” said Aliyev. “We are eager to show the world just how much more we can achieve. “Our natural resources have only given an impetus to the development of our country. The future sustainable development of Azerbaijan must be based on scientific and technological progress, modern technology, open and inclusive society. Our country has taken major steps in this direction.” As President of the National Olympic Committee of Azerbaijan, Aliyev has also taken great satisfaction in the speed in which the nation’s athletes have established themselves on the world stage. “Atlanta 1996 was the first Summer Olympic Games in history where Azerbaijan participated as an independent country,” he said. “Two years ago in the 2012 London Olympic Games our country managed to win 10 Olympic medals, ranking 30 out of more than 200 nations, which is a fantastic success.” Aliyev refuses to put limits on what Azerbaijan can achieve in the future. Planning for the European Games is progressing hand-in-hand with the Islamic Solidarity Games, which will take place in Baku in 2017. “Azerbaijan is a secular Muslim country, a country with strong connections to Europe,” he said. “These connections go back to the 19th century. Now these ties are, of course, much stronger, because we base this relationship on partnership grounds. “Multiculturalism is our state policy. We highly value the religious and ethnic tolerance.” Aliyev believes it is highly symbolic that Azerbaijan should be hosting both the European and Islamic Solidarity Games so closely together. “The European Games have not been held before,” he said. “There have been Pan-American, Asian and African Games. The Olympic Movement emerged and was revived in Europe, but for some reason European Games have never been held before. “The mission of hosting the first Games, this honourable mission, has been entrusted to us, and Azerbaijan will play host to the first European Games in 2015. I believe that this event carries not only a sporting but also a great public meaning. Two years later, in 2017, Azerbaijan will host Islamic Solidarity Games. These two events reflect the role of our country in the world.”
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History in the making The 1st European Games Issue 2, September 2014
Azerbaijan’s heritage inspires fresh new look for Baku 2015 As Baku 2015 enters the final stages of preparation for hosting the inaugural European Games it has unveiled a brand new set of imagery symbolising the message of the historic event. Emily Goddard reports. The pomegranate tree is a plant held dear in Azerbaijan - so much so that each October the nation stages a cultural festival to celebrate the fruit with traditional dance and music. Symbolising fertility, abundance and health, the pomegranate has naturally become the perfect emblem for the newly unveiled Baku 2015 European Games look that proudly combines the country’s historical pedigree with contemporary elite continental sport to give a distinctly local feel. Interwoven with the dynamic silhouette of the branches and fruit of the pomegranate tree are symbols of Azerbaijani heritage and culture, along with striking and elegant images of male and female athletes participating in the different sports and disciplines that will be contested at next year’s event. There are colourful stained glass shebeke, the ornamental detail of the magnificent Buta Palace and a nod to the artistic carpet design and weaving traditions that all hold a significant place in the country’s history. A rich palette of Baku Purple, red, blue, yellow and green hues features heavily to capture the spirit and energy of the setting and sports. The design also takes inspiration from
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the natural beauty of Baku and symbolises new beginnings stemming from established roots, traditions that will always be important to Azerbaijan although it is treading a new path. The European Games are a first in a number of ways - the first multisport event for the European Olympic Committees and the first major multisport event to be staged in the nation of Azerbaijan. In addition, it highlights the legacy and future that the inaugural European Games will create for the nation. Simon Clegg, the Chief Operating Officer of Baku 2015, spoke about the unveiling of the new imagery. “This is a dynamic and fresh new look for the Baku 2015 European Games, which symbolises our pride in ancient Azerbaijani heritage and also our excitement at creating a modern Games,” he explained. “The new brand captures everything that is at the heart of the Baku 2015 team - an appreciation of the natural beauty of Baku and a desire to create an innovative sports event that will be enjoyed by the whole of Europe.” The artwork was born out of a partnership between Baku 2015 and branding experts SomeOne, who have previously worked on a number of
renowned global projects, including the London 2012 Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games. Gary Holt, who is a co-founder of SomeOne and its executive creative director, said a visit to the city was all that was required to gain the inspiration needed for the creative design work. “Having visited Baku during the immersive phase of the project, we were impressed at just how lush and beautiful the city was,” he explained. “This inspired the creation of a living property - the Baku 2015 pomegranate tree. Alive with athletes, Azerbaijani art and the pomegranates themselves, the tree has been designed to be an adaptive design, celebrating elite sport in the amazing setting of Baku.” In practice, the colourful and eyecatching new images will feature on tickets, venues, uniforms and all official products of the Baku 2015 European Games.
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History in the making The 1st European Games Issue 2, September 2014
Baku 2015 volunteers will be Games makers and history makers Volunteers will play a crucial role at Baku 2015. Paul Osborne explores what lessons they will also take away from the first European Games. 8
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As with all major sporting events, volunteers will be at the heart of the European Games. To deliver an event the size and scope of Baku 2015, more than 10,000 volunteers are required for various Games-time roles such as hosting, working in sport or helping members of the media and dignitaries. Volunteers are young people - or ones that are young at heart - who want to acquire new skills, welcome the world, and make new friends. Each of the volunteers will help make history as Azerbaijan hosts the first European Games. The volunteer enrolment programme began in June to help
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celebrate the one year to go date until the start of Baku 2015. More than 500 volunteers have now enjoyed the experience of working at the European Youth Olympic Trials at the Tofiq Bahramov Stadium and the European Rhythmic Gymnastics Championships in the National Gymnastics Arena in Baku. There are additional test events scheduled, in which Baku 2015 volunteers can take part to gain more experience and work towards becoming team leaders during the European Games. Azer Almammadov, a 21-year-old linguistics student at Qafqaz University in Baku, is one such volunteer to gain firsthand experience through the European Youth Olympic Trials - an experience he described as “amazing”. “The European Youth Olympic Trials were the first big tournament I have volunteered for,” Almammadov said. “Through the trials I made a lot of new friends. I was able to meet athletes from lots of different countries.” He believes that working as a volunteer at Baku 2015 is a “good way to prepare for the future”, with the skills learned as a volunteer easily transferrable to life after the Games. “It is my dream to feel part of the Olympic spirit,” he said. “Azerbaijan is a young country. This is the first European Games and it is an amazing opportunity for my country.
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“During the Games, it will be good to feel a part of the Azerbaijani youth. The Games will give us the opportunity to show that we are involved in shaping our nation; to show the rest of Europe and even the world what we can do.” The volunteer programme will provide a once in a lifetime experience for many of those participating. It will allow them the chance to give a taste of their nation to the rest of the world, while meeting a host of people from a range of different countries and cultures. It will, according to Almammadov, “inspire the people of Azerbaijan and provide a long-term legacy of positive change across the nation.” Further volunteers were selected in early August, with successful applicants completing a variety of training courses, including specialised sessions on the particular area in which they would be working throughout the duration of the Games. During these training courses, participants acquired new skills and knowledge that can be used in other areas of their lives. Working at the Games will give the volunteers a chance to practice their professional skills, develop new friendships and networks, and enable them to improve their use of the English language.
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1 Year To Go Cele History in the making The 1st European Games Issue 2, September 2014
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ebrations in Baku
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History in the making The 1st European Games Issue 2, September 2014
Creating the next generation of event organisers at Baku 2015 The European Games are sure to leave a sporting legacy, but the Baku 2015 Games Academy will ensure that legacy goes much further, and will also be felt off the field of play and in the boardrooms of tomorrow, as Paul Osborne explains.
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Launched in April this year, the Baku 2015 Games Academy is an innovative and impactful learning programme that has been developed to build the skills and knowledge required to deliver the European Games and leave a lasting capability legacy in Azerbaijan. The unique European Olympic Committees-endorsed initiative is being led by Baku 2015 and the Azerbaijan Youth Foundation, whose Executive Director is Farhad Hajiyev. It is drawing on support from leading academic institutions, including the International Academy of Sports Science
and Technology based in Lausanne, Switzerland, ADA University in Baku, and the International Olympic Academy based in Athens. The Academy will take Azerbaijani team members through a Flexible Learning Pathway, allowing them to access traditional classroom training, video tutorials and self-study materials at an appropriate pace. Through its university Graduate Excellence Programme, the Academy also provides an innovative learning framework that will help prepare participants for a long-term career in managing challenging
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projects, in sport or other fields. The scheme began in July this year, with 45 people enrolling. These graduates undertook three weeks of intensive training before they moved into roles working for the Baku 2015 European Games Operation Committee. By October, more than 150 others are expected to have enrolled in the course, with participants being given responsibility for planning and delivering aspects of the inaugural European Games, including roles at both test events and during Games time. In total, the intake will be made up of around 150 students that have graduated between 2011 and 2014 from universities in Azerbaijan, plus a selection from the nations participating at next year’s continental showpiece. The six-module programme provides an opportunity to become part of the international Games community, developing a strong network with local and
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international colleagues and key players in the industry. The role involves taking on real responsibilities from day one after the three-week intensive training course. In the beginning, participants will attend meetings, shadow colleagues and meet key stakeholders. They will then be placed into pre-Games specialist planning roles, such as in venue management, logistics, scheduling, venue transport and many others. Participants will also be coached and mentored by experienced team members, including international experts so their learning continues on the job. All graduates receive a competitive salary for the duration of the programme, which runs until July 2015, and will receive certificates to recognise their participation in the course, before being given support and guidance by a university careers service in order to help find a future job.
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Celebrating the Baku 2015 European Games in Cannes Azerbaijan’s First Lady
Mehriban Aliyeva
has been in Cannes spreading the word of Baku 2015. Duncan Mackay reports on the explosive event. Azerbaijan’s First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva paid a visit to Cannes on the French Riviera in July to promote next year’s inaugural European Games. The First Lady, who is also chair of the Baku 2015 Organising Committee, travelled to the French city for the “Days of Azerbaijani Culture” event which was organised by the Heydar Aliyev Foundation. The First Lady was at a presentation about the European Games and also watched Azerbaijan’s entry in the Festival d’Art Pyrotechnique, where the best pyrotechnicians from across the world come to compete. The First Lady spoke at a formal dinner attended by more than 300 people, including members of the European Olympic Committees, hosted by Mayor of Cannes David Lisnard, together with the Heydar Aliyev Foundation. “I am delighted to represent the Republic of Azerbaijan in the magnificent city of Cannes and give an insight into the inaugural European Games, which will take place in Baku next June,” said Aliyeva. “The Games will be of benefit to Azerbaijanis of all ages across the whole country, but particularly to the young
people of our nation. “Baku 2015 will create positive memories and excellent facilities to inspire this generation to take-up and continue to play sport throughout their lives. “The European Games will open a new page in Azerbaijan’s sports history and, of course, the first Games will define the level of future Games’ standards. “Despite that only two-and-a-half years have been allocated for the preparation, Azerbaijan is determined to hold these Games at the level of the Summer Olympic Games. “All necessary measures are being taken and the Organising Committee is working hard to ensure this. We have built close partnership relations with international organisations and with the European Olympic Committees. “We have been benefiting from the support of numerous volunteers and all necessary works are being performed. I’m hopeful the first European Games will be held in an environment of justice, fair competition, friendship and solidarity.” Azad Rahimov, who is Azerbaijan’s Minister of Youth and Sport and also Chief Executive of Baku 2015, was also in attendance at the dinner.
“At Baku 2015 we continue to make rapid progress towards delivering the first-ever European Games and we are fully confident that we will deliver the perfect stage for athletes from across Europe to achieve their goals,” he said. “The Games will be the largest multisport event in the history of Azerbaijan and we are determined to be innovative and sustainable, to try new concepts, and to deliver a first-class event.” Denis Masseglia, President of the French
Photo: Denis Masseglia, President of the French National Olympic and Sports Committee, was among the guests at the dinner in Cannes.
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It in the family
National Olympic and Sports Committee, claimed the holding of the first European Games in Azerbaijan will be a great event. Fittingly, Aliyeva noted France’s special place in Olympic history. “I would like to mention that, in 1896, the Olympic Movement was restored by endeavours of eminent French public figure, pedagogue and writer [Baron] Pierre [de]
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Coubertin,” she told the audience. “Ever since then the Olympic Movement’s experience brings people, nations, states together, building bridges and establishing peace, tranquillity and friendship. “I’m hopeful the first European Games will worthily contribute to strengthening of these values.”
Leyla Aliyeva, the daughter of the President and the First Lady, was among the competitors who took part in a special Baku 2015 Race in Cannes to help celebrate next year’s European Games. Watched by her mother Mehriban Aliyeva, the Chair of the Baku 2015 Organising Committee, she joined local residents and tourists in the run along the Promenade de la Croisette, the famous two-kilometre road that stretches along the shore of the Mediterranean Sea. The Heydar Aliyev Foundation, of which Leyla Aliyeva is the Vice-President, organised the event in cooperation with the Mayor of Cannes. At the end of the race the First Lady, who is President of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, presented the winners with certificates and an invitation to the Opening Ceremony of the Baku 2015 European Games. The first runner across the line was Macons Vadelin. After the event, a special lottery was conducted among the runners who had taken part, and the winner was rewarded with an electric car, a prize from the charity.
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History in the making The 1st European Games Issue 2, September 2014
Karate - big in Japan and now in Europe With its roots set deep in Japan, the sport of karate has grown to achieve global appreciation in recent years. Now it is featuring at the Baku 2015 European Games and it is hoped this exposure can help it gain a much desired spot on the Olympic programme, as Nick Butler reports. On the programme at Baku 2015 will be old sports, new sports, new versions of old sports and, in the case of gymnastics, a programme combining both established and innovative sports. But there is only one definitively non-Olympic sport that is confirmed on the programme, and that is karate. Despite failing on three consecutive attempts to be added to the Olympics, in 2005, 2009 and, most recently, in 2013 - when wrestling eventually retained its place on the programme despite having originally been recommended by the International Olympic Committee Executive Board for exclusion after Rio
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2016 - karate is growing and jostling for another attempt in the future. Alongside appearances at the Asian Games in Incheon and next year’s Pan American Games in Toronto, featuring at the inaugural European Games is a major way to raise karate’s profile. “Baku 2015 will be very, very important for us,” said Antonio Espinós, President of the European Karate Federation and the World Karate Federation. “There will be opportunities for greater visibility and prestige, and, as the only non-Olympic sport on the programme, we will have a unique opportunity to showcase the sport.”
There will be some who read this and will no doubt think: “Do we need another martial art on a multi-sport programme?” Karate claims to have a simple-tounderstand scoring system and an aggressive - and therefore entertaining - fighting style. As a result, it is surging in popularity among the world’s youth, something very much in the spirit of the Olympic Movement. Espinós is keen to highlight the strengths of his sport. “I would say karate is a universal sport,” said the Spaniard, who has led the WKF since 1998. “It is very popular and it is now a very strong sport in many European countries, which
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Patrick Hickey and the European Olympic Committees know very well. I feel we can make a very good go of the opportunity provided by participating at Baku 2015, and we will certainly have added value for the EOC.” Since being formed in 1990, the WKF has grown to now represent more than 180 National Federations and has more than 10 million members around the world. Although the sport was only introduced to Europe as recently as the 1950s and 1960s, when Japanese masters began to teach the art there, the continent is now among the strongest hubs for the sport. At the most recent World Championships, held in Paris in 2012, the 16 events produced winners from four different continents, and medals from five. Host nation France ended up on top of the medals table, while Italy, Turkey, Spain, Croatia and Azerbaijan all managed multiple podium finishes. In Baku, the programme will consist of six events for men and women, with a
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total of 96 athletes participating. Five of these will consist of different kumite weight categories, ranging from under 60 kilograms to over 84kg for men, and from under 50kg to over 68kg for women. Literally translated as the “meeting of hands”, kumite consists of sparring bouts of between two and four minutes, with competitors receiving points for one of three kicks: ippon, waza-ari and yuko. Only kicks to the head and face are permitted. The final two events, meanwhile, will be male and female kata competitions. This consists of a formalised sequence of movements that represent various offensive and defensive postures based on idealised combat applications. Competitors are awarded points by judges based on four criteria: conformance, technical performance, athletic performance and technical difficulty. Although this will conjure images of other exhibition-style sports, such as figure skating and rhythmic gymnastics, the WKF emphasises that kata is “not a
dance or theatrical performance”. “It must adhere to the traditional values and principles, be realistic in fighting terms and display concentration, power, and potential impact in its techniques, and must demonstrate strength, power, and speed, as well as grace, rhythm, and balance,” it adds. The karate competition at Baku 2015 will take place inside the Crystal Hall on the first weekend of the Games, June 13 and 14, providing an early opportunity for the sport to shine. Next year’s European Championships, taking place in Istanbul from March 19 to 22, will act as the sole qualification competition, although host nation Azerbaijan will automatically receive one competition place across each of the 12 events at the European Games. It is hoped this will create a similar atmosphere to that seen at the 2012 World Championships in France, where a sell-out crowd of 16,000 packed into the Palais Omnisports de Paris-Bercy to enjoy the action.
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The age of the bespoke Games With “reform” being the buzzword of today’s sporting world, David Owen looks at how the Baku 2015 European Games are breaking new ground in terms of being one of the first flexible major sports events. Spyros Capralos has a swift response when I joke that it must be easier being involved in a Games project where you do not risk turning up an antiquity every time you sink a spade in the ground. “In Baku, if they start digging, they risk finding more petroleum,” the head of the European Olympic Committees’ Baku 2015 Coordination Commission - and former Deputy Chief Operating Officer of the Athens 2004 Organising Committee retorts. Happily, because of the EOC’s determination in these unpredictable times to tailor-make the inaugural European Games to the city that is hosting them, construction activity is not required to the same levels we have come to expect with events of this scale, featuring 19 sports and more than 6,000 athletes. “We did not specifically ask them to construct anything,” Capralos says, pointing out that Baku needed both an aquatics centre and a national stadium, while adding that the stunning new National Gymnastics Arena was built for the recent European Rhythmic Gymnastics Championships. “We are trying to make it as simple as
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possible and also to have a sustainable Games. We don’t oblige the organisers to construct big facilities that could end up being white elephants and we didn’t want sports not practiced at all in the hostcountry.” The broadcasting and press centres and the Athletes’ Village, which can be major items for event organisers who have to build them from scratch, are to be in pre-existing structures, he explains, with the Village housed in an apartment complex. “The rooms are twice as spacious as London 2012,” Capralos adds. With reform very much in the sporting air, largely because of International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach’s Olympic Agenda 2020 initiative, Baku 2015 may end up pioneering a number of new ideas - and a more flexible approach to athletes’ accommodation is evidently one of them. “We are trying to innovate,” Capralos, who is also President of the Hellenic Olympic Committee, tells me. “In the Olympics, the athletes come at the beginning and leave at the end. Here, athletes will come just before their competition and leave when the competition ends.” He explains that this arrangement should afford more flexibility to athletes who may have other events in the crowded international sporting calendar to move on to. Capralos says he envisages that each National Olympic Committee will be offered a certain amount of space in the Village. It will then be up to them to manage the coming and going of their athletes. Visitor accommodation has been another focus of attention because, Capralos tells me, “one challenge in Baku is the lack of a big number of hotel rooms…
There have been many new hotels, but the quantity is not enough”. Asked if this meant that foreigners were not being encouraged to come, he replies: “We are encouraging people to come, but they should make sure they book their hotel rooms in advance. “If people don’t come, they will miss a great sports Games… “Azerbaijan is a country that is not very well known to the outside world. Everyone who visits there is pleasantly surprised. Baku is a cosmopolitan city.” With another Coordination Commission visit on September 3 and 4, Capralos is happy with the state of preparations, noting that the Aquatics Centre and the Stadium are “progressing very well”. “We have the whole country committed to it,” he emphasises. “Having the full commitment of the Government makes things much easier.” One point of detail that he expects to be resolved during the forthcoming Coordination Commission meetings is the venue for the triathlon event. At present, this is due to take place in the heart of the Azerbaijani capital, with a finish at the Victory Celebration Plaza. However, an issue has arisen over the cleanliness of the water that would be used in the swimming leg of an event that also features cycling and running. Capralos tells me that analysis of the water has now been undertaken and results will be shown to the Coordination Commission in September. A final decision on the venue will then be taken, in conjunction with the sport’s world governing body, the International Triathlon Union. Capralos assures me that the event, which is set to have Olympic qualification places at stake, will be part of the Games. It is just a question of finalising the location.
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Baku 2015 gets thumbs up from
Olympic
greats Michael Johnson and Vladimir Salnikov, two of the biggest names in the world of sport, have rained praise on preparations for the Baku 2015 European Games and know how important it is for young Azerbaijani athletes to be inspired to succeed on home turf. Gary Anderson reports.
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As the countdown to the start of the 2015 European Games continues, recent visits to Baku by two legendary sports stars from the world of athletics and swimming have further cemented the growing stature of the event, while also providing some stardustsprinkled inspiration to many Azerbaijani athletes hoping to compete on home soil next year. Michael Johnson of the
United States and Vladimir Salnikov of the Russian Federation, both four-time Olympic champions, took time out from their busy schedules to pay a visit to Baku in June and both men were impressed by what they saw in Azerbaijan’s capital. Johnson’s visit coincided with Olympic Day celebrations on June 24 and saw the 400 metres world and Olympic record holder take a tour of the
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magnificent Athletes’ Village in Baku, which will be home to some 6,000 athletes and 3,000 officials from the National Olympic Committees of Europe during next year’s historic Games. An eight-time world champion, Johnson was also given an update on the ongoing construction of the National Stadium, which will form the centrepiece of the Games and host the athletics competitions in front of 65,000 spectators. The man from Dallas, Texas, who was visiting Baku as a guest of BP, one of the official sponsors for the European Games, and Azerbaijan’s National Olympic Committee, took time out to speak to Baku 2015 staff who are busy working to ensure no stone is left unturned in terms of preparation. He also provided words of inspiration to young Azerbaijani athletes who are hoping to emulate his success on home soil when he claimed a historic 200m and 400m double at the Atlanta 1996 Olympics. “It has been a pleasure to be in Baku this week and witness the growing enthusiasm for sport in Azerbaijan,” said Johnson during his visit. “I understand how much of an inspiration a home Games can be, and the first European Games is a fantastic opportunity for the athletes of this country to make history and achieve success.” That was a sentiment echoed by Salnikov, who followed up his three freestyle gold medals in the 400m, 1500m and 4x200m at his home Olympic Games in Moscow in 1980 with a fourth gold in the 1500m at Seoul 1988, when he visited Baku just days after Johnson. He was, not surprisingly, particularly interested in the progress of the Baku Aquatics Centre which will play host to the continent’s finest divers, swimmers and synchronised swimmers next year. “It has been a pleasure to visit the Baku 2015 venues and witness the impressive progress which is being made to deliver the first-ever European Games,” said Salnikov, who is now chairman of the Russian Swimming Federation, a Russian Olympic Committee Executive Committee member and an official on the International Aquatics Federation Bureau. He also visited the National Gymnastics
Photo: (L-R) Mehman Karimov, NOC the Republic of Azerbaijan; Michael Johnson; Simon Clegg, COO Baku 2015; Seve Kyriacou, Head of International Olympic and Paralympic Programmes BP.
Arena and the Crystal Hall, which will stage the boxing, fencing, indoor volleyball, karate and taekwondo events. While the legacy of the superb facilities being built in Baku will benefit sport across Azerbaijan for decades to come, like Johnson, Salnikov also stressed the need for the nation’s young athletes to grab the
once-in-a-lifetime opportunity of hosting the Games and use it to build success in the future. “Competing at a home Games is a huge inspiration for any athlete, and I am sure every Azerbaijani competitor will enjoy performing at these venues and be inspired to achieve success,” he added.
Photo: James MacLeod, Director of Athlete Services and Operations Baku 2015, greets Vladimir Salnikov.
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History in the making The 1st European Games Issue 2, September 2014
Testing for success A comprehensive test event programme is vital for any major sports competition, but the key for the organisers is learning from each experience. Nick Butler gives us the rundown on the Baku 2015 test events that will ensure success at next year’s European Games. With much running, jumping and throwing, the Baku 2015 test event programme began earlier this summer with the European Youth Olympic Trials at the Tofiq Bahramov Stadium. As has been seen elsewhere in recent times, test events can prove a blessing or a curse, showcasing both the negative and positive elements of preparations. But, as well as offering some of the continent’s finest young athletes a chance to qualify for the Summer Youth Olympic Games in Nanjing, the event highlighted the overwhelmingly positive progress being made in Baku. The event, which saw 678 youngsters compete in 36 disciplines, was the first international athletics meeting staged in Azerbaijan and acted as a precursor to next year’s European Athletics Team Championships Third League in the new National Stadium, which will be part of the European Games. It provided a chance to test a number of Games-time functions, including transport operations, security, and food services. A total of 931 athletes and team officials also stayed in the newly built Athletes’
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Village throughout the competition, with 12,800 meals served to the residents and 469 bus trips made to transport people between the Village and Tofiq Bahramov Stadium. “European Athletics is very happy and impressed by the exceptionally high level of organisation displayed by our Azerbaijani friends,” said José Luis De Carlos, First Vice-President of European Athletics, following the conclusion of the three-day event on June 1. “The Azerbaijan Athletics Federation were given a very short period of time to organise this event but they have done an excellent job and we are now looking forward to working with them on a successful European Athletics Team Championships Third League as part of the European Games.” Simon Clegg, Chief Operating Officer of Baku 2015, highlighted the “wonderful contribution” of all 166 Azerbaijani National Technical Officials, who “delivered such an excellent event after only four months of intense training”. Later in June, the European Rhythmic
Gymnastics Championships got underway in the newly opened National Gymnastics Arena. Although not an official Baku 2015 test event, the Baku 2015 European Games Operation Committee was involved in assisting the Azerbaijan Gymnastics Federation with preparations. The tournament provided another opportunity to test the Athletes’ Village, as well as other vital logistical aspects. As was the case with the European Youth Olympic Trials, an added bonus was the host nation’s success on the medals table. Other events in sports that will appear on the Baku 2015 programme have also taken place this year, including the Tour of Azerbaijan cycling event that raced through the streets of Baku and could yet be featured in the time trial and road race events at next June’s European Games. The next official test event will be on October 18, when the cross-country course at the Mountain Bike Velopark will be examined. Many more events can be expected as the countdown to the first European Games continues.
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Published: September 2014 by Dunsar Media Company Limited Editor: Duncan Mackay Managing Director & Project Coordinator: Sarah Bowron Baku 2015: Olalla Cernuda Farida Akhundova
Reporters: David Owen Nick Butler Paul Osborne Gary Anderson Emily Goddard Dunsar Media Design: Elliot Willis
Pictures: Baku 2015 Print: @BakuGames2015 Sarah Bowron www.csfprint.com
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