On June 21-22 Tbilisi will host European Athletics Team Championships Third League. Today, on June 20, press conference was held in the hall of “Dinamo Arena”. Aleksi Akhvlediani, president of the Georgian Athletics Federation, Peter Stafford, manager of European athletics project, and Vadim Zelichenok, council member of European Athletics Association, attended the press conference.

608 sportsmen from 15 European countries (Albania, Andorra, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cyprus, Georgia, Iceland, Israel, Luxembourg, Moldova, Macedonia, Malta, Montenegro and the Athletic Association of Small States of Europe (San Marino, Liechtenstein, Gibraltar) will participate in the mentioned tournament. The championship includes different distance hurdles, jump (pole vault, triple jump, long jump), throws (hammer, discus, javelin) and shot put.

The competition will take place in “Dinamo Arena” and new stadium nearby the Embassy of America.

The opening ceremony will be held in “Dinamo Arena”, at 12:00, on June 21. As for the closing ceremony, it is planned in the Olympic village near Tbilisi Sea.

Akhvlediani, Zelichenok and Stafford made brief comments for mass media:

Aleksi Akhvlediani: “It is worth mentioning that such tournament in athletics is held in Georgia for the first time. Managers of “Dinamo Arena” refused to hold throw disciplines. So, we had to appoint throw competitions in a new stadium which is under construction”.

Vadim Zelichenok: “The preparatory work is done well. I am sure European Athletics Team Championships Third League will be held well…”

Peter Stafford: “I was in a new stadium and that is why I was late. The new stadium is ready to host the championship. In 2016 Georgia will host another interesting tournament - European U-18 Athletics Championships”.

European Team Championships

21.06.2014

11:00 – 17:05 throws (new stadium, nearby territory of the Embassy of America)

13:00 – 16:15 jumps (Dinamo Arena)

14:00 – 18:15 hurdles (Dinamo Arena)

22.06.2014

12:30 – 16:35 throws (new stadium, nearby territory of the Embassy of America)

13:00 – 16:05 jumps (Dinamo Arena)

14:00 – 17:45 hurdles (Dinamo Arena)

Roland Labuchidze