Azernews.Az

By Nigar Orujova

European Olympic Committee President Patrick Hickey with an assessment committee will visit Azerbaijan at the end of April, chairman of the Olympic Games Efraim Zinger said in Baku on Thursday.

The inaugural European Games will be held in Azerbaijan in 2015, according to a decision made by the European Olympic Committees in December, with 18 sports included in the program.

Hickey will set the venue and date of the first European Olympic Games and familiarize himself with the conditions provided in the country for hosting the tournament, according to Zinger.

Zinger expressed confidence in the high-level conduct of the Games in Azerbaijan.

Touching upon the issue of keeping wrestling in the Olympic program, Zinger said that a final decision will be made at the 125th International Olympic Committee session in Buenos Aires in September. But he stressed that "we will try to keep wrestling in the program".

Azerbaijan's National Olympic Committee also expects wrestling to be left in the Olympic program, NOC vice president Chingiz Huseynzade said on Wednesday.

"I hope this issue will be settled positively and wrestling will remain in the Olympic program. Azerbaijan is hopeful for it," he said.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) recommended to exclude wrestling from the Summer Olympic Games 2020 in February.

However, there is no doubt that wrestling will be included in the European Games given that in March Nenad Lalovic, acting president of governing body FILA, signed a "letter of understanding" with organizers of the 2015 Games in Baku.

Under former president Raphael Martinetti, FILA had indicated it would not take part in the European Games.

Taking part in the European Games in a country with a strong wrestling tradition seems imperative for FILA as it seeks to regain its Olympic status. Wrestling is now competing against seven other sports for a single opening on the 2020 program.