Azernews.Az

By Sara Rajabova

Diplomats and politicians from different countries have called on the international community to refrain from mixing sports with politics.

The statements came as some European parliamentarians, politicians and media outlets have begun a vitriolic campaign against Azerbaijan ahead of the First European Games, which is currently underway in Baku.

The aforementioned attacked Azerbaijan with accusations of violating human rights in the country and even called to boycott the Games.

This campaign was aimed at tarnishing the country’s image.

In reality, such campaigns against Azerbaijan are not new for the fledgling country. It is actually quite common for some circles to criticize and put pressure on the country ahead of and during major events.

Ambassadors and politicians from various countries who witnessed the work that went into preparations and took part at the magnificent opening ceremony of the Baku 2015 European Games, however, have highly appreciated Azerbaijan’s efforts to host the Games.

Pascal Meunier, the French ambassador to Azerbaijan, considered that it is a mistake to politicize sports, because it unites people and is beyond any politics.

He told Trend that the opening ceremony of the first European Games in Baku on June 12 exceeded expectations.

Meunier went on to add that it was a very beautiful event. He said the information about Azerbaijani culture was well-organized, and red balloons representing pomegranates as well as the interesting effect of the Gobustan rocks appearing as if emerged from under the earth on the stage were beautiful, elegant, and very tasteful.

He further noted that the president of the French National Olympic Committee visited the Athletes’ Village and was impressed by the quality of the facilities for the athletes, as well as the restaurant, both of which met very high standards.

In meantime, Giampaolo Cutillo, Italy’s ambassador to Azerbaijan said the opening ceremony of the Baku 2015 European Games has been one of his most incredible experiences, beautiful, very elegant and very well-organized.

Commenting on the flow of negative information in Western media outlets, Cutillo said, “I don’t think there is any need to mix sports and politics, these are two different things.”

The diplomats believe that the European Games are a great opportunity to bring different cultures together while promoting peace throughout Europe.

Robert Cekuta, the U.S. ambassador to Azerbaijan, said international sporting events like the Games are a great way to bring people of different countries and cultures together.

He said these Games in particular bring together a number of European countries where there are or have been conflicts, so they can contribute to the shared goal of realizing the Europe that is whole, free, and at peace.

Cekuta also added that the First European Games showed that Azerbaijani people see their future as a part of Europe.

"I want to congratulate the organizers and performers for an excellent opening ceremony, which not only expressed so much about Azerbaijan's history and culture, but also demonstrated the sense that the Azerbaijani people see their future as a part of Europe," he said.

Camiel Eurlings, the former minister of Transport, Public Works and Water Management of the Netherlands and a former member of the European Parliament, also noted the importance of so many cultures coming together.

He said the opening ceremony of the first European Games was very, very beautiful; it showed a lot of the great traditions and the culture of Azerbaijan.

Eurlings said it was a very lively show with many “wow” moments.

“We were really surprised by everything that was happening, what I liked the most is the pride of Azerbaijani people at the stadium, they were so proud, so happy and so cheerful. It was a great evening,” he said.

Eurlings went on to add that he heard about Baku before, but the city surpassed all of his expectations. He noted that it is a beautiful city that combines many old parts with modern parts. “People are very friendly, I am very happy to be here and I will surely come back,” he said.

The European Games that kicked off in Baku on June 12 will last until June 28.

There is a total of 20 sports at Baku 2015: 16 Olympic sports and four non-Olympic sports. More than 6,000 athletes from across Europe will be representing their nations over the 17 days of the competition.

Baku was awarded the Games by the European Olympic Committees (EOC) in December 2012.

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Sara Rajabova is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @SaraRajabova

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