QUALIFYING YEAR

The year just beginning will be an important one for Azerbaijani sport.  The struggle to qualify for the summer Olympic Games in London begins this year.  In addition, Baku is to host a number of prestigious international events.

Baku's first major tournament this year is the international judo qualification tournament.  The world's best judokas will arrive in the capital seeking places at the London Olympics.  Victory in the World Masters tournament will earn the winner 400 qualifying points.  All the best members of the Azerbaijani team will compete in the tournament, the leader of the national team, Olympic champion Elnur Mammadov, among them.  According to the new rules of the International Judo Federation, Olympic places in the discipline will be allocated in accordance with the rating lists.  In other words, those sportsmen who figure among the top eight in the ratings lists (for Europe in all weight categories) two months prior to the Olympics will qualify to go London.

Another prestigious Olympic qualification tournament to be organized in Azerbaijan is the taekwondo championship.  According to the rules, Olympic places in this discipline are issued in two stages.  The first stage will take place in Baku this year.  Every country has a quota of just four sportsmen (two men and two women) to be sent to the Olympic Games.  Thus it is already clear how stiff the competition will be.  The Azerbaijani women's taekwondo team will have to give their best performances this year.  Of course, our girls have not taken part in the Olympic Games before.

And the largest event to be held in Baku in 2011 will be the world boxing championship for adults.  This will be the largest tournament in the history of Azerbaijani sport.  The championship will also be an Olympic qualifying tournament:  the world's best boxers will compete for the right to fight at the Olympic Games.  This is why the Azerbaijani team will have to struggle hard, but the team's management aims to win as many places as possible at home.

This year will be remembered for other international tournaments held in Azerbaijan too.  The Azerbaijani national football team will host the German and Belgian national teams in European Championship qualifying games.  Azerbaijan's volleyball players will also play important home games in the Challenge Cup and Champions League.  Further, the Rabita volleyball club has already qualified for the league's final round, which means that Baku might host yet another prestigious event, the "final four tournament."  The Azerbaijan Volleyball Federation has already sent the required documents and, to all appearances, Baku will be given the right to organize the games of the continent's four best volleyball teams.

World Series Boxing is also scheduled to take place in Baku. The Baki Atesi (Baku Fire) team will host its opponents at the Border Guards Olympic Sports Centre.  The Azerbaijani team is currently leading its group after it scored the maximum possible points in five competitions.  This increases the boxers' chances of moving to the play-off stage.

The third tournament of the Professional Boxing League will also take place in Baku in 2011.  In March, our capital will host the Ipak Yolu (Silk Road) tournament, and in May the international tournament the Heydar Aliyev Cup.

In May, Baku will host the President's Cup chess tournament.  The world's best chess players will be invited to this prestigious tournament.  Last year, World Champion Vladimir Kramnik and a number of other well-known chess players took part in this competition.

It seems that 2011 will be rich in prestigious international sporting events and major tournaments for Azerbaijan.  The country's president and head of the National Olympic Committee, Ilham Aliyev, noted when he summarized the results of 2010 that Azerbaijan is viewed internationally as a sporting nation.  Baku has proven that it can host a sporting event of any size or level, even a continental or world championship.  It is no coincidence that the international federations of different disciplines mention Azerbaijan increasingly frequently as an example of good organization for international tournaments.  And this year will be no exception.