Second European Games in Belarus

MINSK, 1 March (BelTA) – I am looking forward towards the Second European Games, President of the European Olympic Committees (EOC) Janez Kocijancic told the media after his meeting with Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko in Minsk on 1 March, BelTA has learned.

“The European Olympic Committees is fully satisfied with the preparations for the sports forum. We are looking to the future with the optimism and confidence, since highly-qualified and experienced professionals are engaged in the preparations for the Games here. I am looking forward to the moment I come for the opening ceremony of the European Games in Minsk next year,” Janez Kocijancic stressed.

He also said that he congratulated Alexander Lukashenko on Team Belarus’ performance at the Olympic Games in PyeongChang. “I also congratulate the Belarusian nation on their team’s 15th place on the world's ranking. This is a very good result. It reflects the level of Belarus’ sports competence, both in terms of sport and also the organization of a sport process. This gives us confidence in the successful preparations for the European Games,” he said.

When asked about possible judge bias against some Belarusian Olympians in PyeongChang, Janez Kocijancic noted that this issue was not addressed directly at the meeting with Alexander Lukashenko. “But you know, I am from Slovenia, and we also have certain complaints of this kind. But the judge is the judge, sport is sport, and victory is achieved not at a green negotiating table but sports grounds,” the EOC head noted.