Opinions & Interviews

Lukashenko on hosting IBU Open European Championships in Belarus: Financial aspect is not a priority

MINSK, 17 February (BelTA) – Belarus will get financial benefits from hosting the IBU Open European Championships which has been relocated from Estonia’s Otepaa to Raubichi due to the warm weather and the lack of snow in Estonia, Belarus President Aleksandr Lukashenko said as he visited the Raubichi Winter Sports Center on 16 February, BelTA has learned.

“They [the International Biathlon Union (IBU)] fully finance our preparations [for hosting the sports competition]. I am not even speaking about thousands of people who will come to Belarus, they will live in Minsk and here, just like in previous years. Therefore, from the financial standpoint, it will generate big profit,” the head of state said.

At the same time, the Belarusian leader emphasized that the financial aspect is not the main thing for him. “The main thing is the statement of the IBU who thanked us for helping them, virtually saving them. And he promised to think about hosting an IBU World Cup stage with top athletes in Belarus,” Aleksandr Lukashenko said.

As BelTA reported earlier, the 2020 IBU Open European Biathlon Championships has been relocated from Estonia’s Otepaa to Raubichi due to the warm weather in Estonia. The Belarusian Sport and Tourism Ministry and representatives of the Raubichi sports center expressed their readiness to host the forum. Apart from the IBU Open European Championships, the sports center near Minsk will host the IBU World Cup on 4-7 March. The program of the tournament has been changed and will be shortened by one day.

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