Second European Games in Belarus

MINSK, 1 September (BelTA) – Over 11,000 participants will be accredited for the 2019 European Games in Minsk, BelTA learned from Georgy Katulin, Head of the Directorate of the Second European Games, on 1 September.

The official said: “Despite the experience accumulated in the course of various international competitions the organizers of the 2019 European Games are in for serious trials. Belarus has never hosted an event this large. Let me quote some figures: about 11,000 participants will be accredited for the European forum. Apart from athletes and coaches — about 4,000 — Minsk will welcome volunteers, reporters, and various officials.”

A contract for hosting the Second European Games was signed in Minsk on 1 September. The contract is different from the one on hosting the First European Games in Baku, Azerbaijan. “The European Olympic Committees have declared that the games in Minsk in 2019 will be held with assistance of partners. A common marketing program is one of the key clauses. In line with the program revenues from the European Games in Minsk will be split between Belarus and the European Olympic Committees. Expenses are covered by individual clauses of the contract. The organizing committee in Belarus will bear the bulk of the cost of accommodating and feeding the athletes and providing ground transportation to them. The European Olympic Committees will cover the travel expenses of all the sport delegations and officials on their way to Minsk,” said Georgy Katulin.

In his words, the number of sports, which will be represented in Minsk in 2019, will not change. Beach volleyball has been removed from the previously declared 16 sports. “The European Olympic Committees and the European Volleyball Confederation have been unable to come to terms. The confederation presented exceedingly high requirements for a beach volleyball tournament,” explained Georgy Katulin.

The Second European Games are scheduled for 21-30 June 2019. They will feature 15 sports: badminton, 3x3 basketball, boxing, wrestling(freestyle wrestling, Greco-Roman wrestling, women’s wrestling), cycling (track cycling and road bicycle racing), gymnastics (artistic gymnastics, rhythmic gymnastics, acrobatics, aerobics, and trampoline), rowing (kayak and canoe competitions), judo, karate, track and field athletics, sambo, archery, shooting (including clay target shooting), table tennis, and beach football. As many as 189 medals will be awarded in 23 sport disciplines.

Belarus was granted the right to host the 2^nd European Games during the 45^th session of the General Assembly of the European Olympic Committees in Minsk in October 2016. Bright Year, Bright You will be the official slogan of the Second European Games. The Russian version is Время ярких побед. The Belarusian one is Час яскравых перамог. An open contest is in progress in Belarus to design the mascot for the 2019 European Games. Anyone is welcome to compete. Contestants are invited to suggest the idea of the mascot, its image, and name. The mascot has to live up to Olympic values and the slogan Bright Year, Bright You. Applications can be submitted by 15 November 2017.