On Monday 24th November at Maiden Tower in the Old City of Baku – Azerbaijan, Baku and BEGOC (The Organising Committee) celebrated 200 Days to Go to the Opening Ceremony of Baku 2015, the 1st European Games with a spectacular ceremony.
Part of the Ceremony was the launching of the two mascots for the Games – Jeyran and Nar. (See separate article)
The Baku 2015 Games will commence on the 12th June 2015 with a spectacular Opening Ceremony in the new National Stadium and conclude after 16 days of sporting events on the 28th June 2015 with a Ceremony to celebrate the 1st European Games and the hosting by Baku, Azerbaijan.
From the 12th to the 28th June 2015, 20 Sports, 6,500 Athletes, 49 European Nations, Officials, Team Support personnel and Media, will converge on Baku and make it the major city of sport in Europe for the majority of June 2015.
Ireland expects to be represented by up to 65 Athletes from 12 or 13 Sports. At the time of writing, we have 43 Athletes Qualified in Gymnastics, Boxing, Swimming, Diving, Canoeing, Sambo, Wrestling and Basketball.
The President of the Olympic Council of Ireland, Pat Hickey – “The inaugural European Games in Baku will be spectacular and will bring Europe into line with other Continental Games. I look forward to the Irish Team performing well and hope that we will bring home some of the first ever European Medals. It will be an event that makes history and all of Team Ireland will be a part of that history.”
The Chef de Mission, Dermot Henihan –“We are building a team and hopefully it will be a team of strong contenders. The European Games will provide many with direct or indirect qualification for the Rio Olympic Games in 2016 and with this as a carrot, we expect that the best athletes in Europe will be there contending for all places. I look forward to leading Team Ireland into the Azerbaijan National Stadium for the 1st European Games and be part of a true piece of sporting history.”
“With less than 200 days to go, our preparations are now at fever pitch and as the team expands, our preparations and efforts continue to grow. The co-operation of our sports is excellent and we all have a job to do together and we want Team Ireland at its best in June 2015 in Baku.”
