13:52,
YEREVAN, APRIL 15, ARMENPRESS. The Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sports of Armenia issued a statement, considering the decision of the Ministry of Youth and Sports and the National Olympic Committee of Azerbaijan to stop further participation of Azerbaijani athletes in the European Weightlifting Championship in Yerevan on April 15-23 as worrying from the point of view of sports ethics.
"From the beginning, the Republic of Armenia has ensured all safety standards, and no problems related to the safety of the weightlifters who arrived in Yerevan to participate in the championship have arisen and could not have arisen.
The incident that happened during the opening ceremony, which was resolved very quickly, has nothing to do with the safety of the athletes and ensuring their normal competitions. All necessary conditions were fully provided.
The Republic of Armenia remains committed to fulfilling its commitments to the International Weightlifting Federation and reaffirms the readiness to hold the European championship 2023 at a high level”, ARMENPRESS reports, reads the statement issued by the Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sport of the Republic of Armenia.
The Ministry of Youth and Sports of Azerbaijan and the National Olympic Committee of that country made a decision to return the Azerbaijani athletes to their homeland after the incident of burning the Azerbaijani flag at the opening ceremony of the European Weightlifting Championship on the evening of April 14 at the Karen Demirchyan Sports and Concert Complex in Yerevan, citing that the Azerbaijani athletes were subjected to psychological pressure.