Baku European Games to become brand,Israeli envoy says
By Nigar Orujova
Israel will send 150 athletes to the inaugural European Games that will be held in the Azerbaijani capital this June.
Israeli ambassador to Azerbaijan Rafael Harpaz told Trend, that the Olympic Committee of Israel has been cooperating with the Olympic Committee of Azerbaijan for a long time.
“The two countries have cooperated in the field of sport for many years. The European Games in Azerbaijan will become a brand and will promote the development of sports infrastructure in the country,” he said.
Harpaz said the Israeli delegation to Baku 2015 will be larger than their delegation for the Olympic Games in London.
The first European Games are important for the Israeli athletes, as those who win in Baku will have the opportunity to take part in the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, he stressed.
The ambassador went on to add that the first European Games will be broadcasted in Israel.
"Israeli media are widely covering the preparations to the first European Games in Baku, which we know will be a grand and successful event," said Harpaz.
The innovative new multi-sports event in Baku will include 20 sports, 16 of which are Olympic, during the 17 days of competition in June 12-28. 6,000 athletes will prove themselves in Azerbaijan’s capital.
The United Kingdom, France, Russia, and a number of other countries have already reported their respective delegation figure on the list of participants to come to Baku.
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Nigar Orujova is AzerNews’s staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @o_nigar
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