THE MOST IMPORTANT THING IS TO APPROVE THE PROGRAMME

Azerbaijan has begun preparing to stage the first European Olympic Games. As soon as the list of the main sports to be represented at the Games was finalized, the sporting venues and accommodation centres for visitors were also decided. Safety and transport issues are also being addressed.

A whole range of questions is currently being discussed with the European Olympic Committee. Competition rules and the selection process for the types of sport for the Games are also being discussed. Azerbaijan has proposed imparting the European Games with the status of a licence for a number of sports for selection for the 2016 Olympics which will be held in Rio de Janeiro. This question is now being discussed with the International Olympic Committee.

The vice-president of the Azerbaijani National Olympic Committee Cingiz Huseynzada kindly agreed to talk to R+ about how preparations are going.

- When will the programme for the European Games be approved?

- The general programme of competition has already been approved. The final talks with sports federations are now in progress. International organizations usually plan their activities for several years ahead and in this respect the announcement about holding the European Olympic Games came as a surprise to them and has created a number of problems with the competition schedule. But progress has been made. Some federations which at first declined to take part in the Euro Games have now changed their mind. And now several international federations are awaiting our consent to include individual sports in the schedule.

- What's the difference between the European Games and the Summer Olympics?

- Both competitions have both similar features and differences. At the Euro Games this difference concerns in the main the regulations and the number of participants. In several sports the winners of the Euro Games will receive a licence for the summer Olympics. On the whole these Games will decide who are the strongest athletes in Europe.

- When will the sports that we shall be seeing at the Euro Games finally be confirmed?

- This question has to be decided in the next few months. I can already tell you now that handball, soccer, basketball, water sports and track and field athletics will be represented. Specifically, there will be beach soccer and three-a-side basketball. In swimming there will probably be competitions for young people. All questions will be resolved at the beginning of the autumn.

- How will the athletes for the European Games be selected?

- This depends on the sporting federations. Either any athlete may be invited to the competitions or they may be decided in preliminary tournaments. Some federations want to impart the Euro Games with the status of a continental championship: specifically, the judo and wrestling competitions will be considered to be the European Championship. Other federations propose imparting the Games with the nature of a licence: in other words, the winner gets the right to appear in the 2016 Summer Olympics. Discussions are underway in all areas. Baku was chosen to hold the Euro Games seven months ago, and since then many questions have been resolved. Some matters take time to be regulated, but the main thing is to approve the programme of the Euro Games, which will enable us to prepare the sports arenas.

- The licence will give the Euro Games added interest and make the athletes more committed.

- If licences are distributed this will enhance the tournament's significance. In athletics and swimming a certain standard will have to be reached to get a passport to Rio. In judo the athletes will earn ratings points which will be taken into account when making selections for the Summer Olympics. At the Euro Games the judoists will be able to make up their own licence points.

- When will the arenas that are being built be ready?

- We are planning to complete all work by the beginning of 2015. Most of the arenas were due to be built whether we held the Games or not. These are the Olympic Stadium, the Gymnastics Complex and the Water Sports Palace where the National Olympic Committee and the Ministry of Youth and Sports could see there was a need. It was just that their construction coincided in time with the staging of the Euro Games.  But, naturally, for such a representative competition temporary complexes also needed to be built. Therefore, we need to know the number of athletes and officials who will be coming to the Euro Games. The Olympic Village is preparing for a specific number of visitors.

- For which sports will the temporary arenas be built?

- The European Olympic Committee wants half the facilities to be of a temporary nature so they won't be used later. For example, the arenas for water polo, beach volleyball and certain other sports will be dismantled afterwards. It will not be possible to stage the water polo competition at the Water Sports Palace. This tournament is quite a long one and there will be other sports competitions in the palace during that time. We shall prepare a special pool for the water polo, which will be moved elsewhere after the competition. There is a great demand for swimming pools in the regions. All the venues for the temporary facilities have already been decided.

- When will the number of participants be decided?

- All questions will be resolved before the end of the year. As soon as the types of sport are decided we shall be having meetings with all the continental federations and will discuss all problems with them. A session of the General Assembly of the European Olympic Committee will be held in Rome in November and all questions must be resolved before then. There we shall present a report on the preparations for the Euro Games. Azerbaijan has already started working in earnest on preparing for this impressive competition. Our aim is to present the European Olympic Games at the highest level and I believe we shall again be able to surprise Europe.