19:28,
YEREVAN, APRIL 21, ARMENPRESS. Since the first days of the ongoing European Weightlifting Championships, held in Yerevan, Turkish athletes have won 6 gold medals. President of the Turkish Weightlifting Federation, Talat Unlu, notes this fact with great joy. In his estimation, the championship is very well organised in Armenia.
"Everything is very serious and well prepared by the organisers. The only thing that saddens us is the episode known to all of you, a protester with a disrespectful act. Indeed, a lot of effort has been made. I told our country’s television the same thing that this is the best-organised European Championship in the last ten years. As I already mentioned, if it were not for that episode of the first day, when the flag of Azerbaijan was set on fire, then everything would be perfect. For us, everything is well-considered here. We have no problems. Even too much was done, which made us feel uncomfortable. However, we understand that what was supposed to be done was done, and it was also very well organised," Talat Unlu told ARMENPRESS.
After the incident, the Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sports of Armenia assured that the incident had been resolved. Azerbaijan’s representative was given a new flag, which ensured the regular course of the ceremony. Talat Unlu says that other than this incident, they haven’t faced any problems.
Talat Unlu – "We did not deal with any serious problems here. As I said, all safety considerations were very strictly taken into account. It was done more than it was necessary."
Turkiye will be the next country to host the European Weightlifting Championships. Preparations have already started in Antalya. Now they are carefully following the organisational work of Armenia, so that they can organise next year’s championship at the same high level.
Talat Unlu – "I will be here on all days of this championship, because one of the main reasons we came here was to see how it was organised. After asking for permission, I took photos and videos from the competition and training halls. To prepare for the championship in the best possible way, we received such information and advice from the organisers. We were helped in that regard, for which we are grateful."
The athlete of the Turkish national team, Nuray Gungyor, is one of the gold medal winners of the championship. The athlete finds it difficult to describe her feelings. She is happy that she was able to perform successfully in Armenia. According to the weightlifter, the European Championship was organised at a high level in Armenia.
"The event is going very well. It was very well organised, for which I am very grateful to the organisers. We are satisfied. Everything is perfect," Nuray Gungyor said.
More than 300 athletes from about 40 countries are competing at the European Weightlifting Championships in Yerevan. There are only a few days left until the end of the championship, and the competition is heating up day by day.