Azernews.Az

Sport is one of the great ways uniting nations, and it is very exciting that the First European Games are taking place in Azerbaijan this year, said Lord Tom Chandon, the member of the House of Lords.

Baku was awarded the Games by the European Olympic Committees (EOC) in December 2012. The mentioned multi-sport event will be held in Baku on June 12-28, 2015.

"Inevitably, sport can attract protests and controversy, but it is right to go ahead and not to allow concerns of any partisan nature to get in the way of that," Chandos told Trend, commenting on certain foreign circles trying to discredit Azerbaijan amid the upcoming games.

Chandos expressed hope that everybody in Azerbaijan and everybody in Europe will show enthusiasm behind the games.

"I think it is truly good for all the nation, not just the government," he said.

Chandos said that UK and Azerbaijan are increasing the links in the sports field, as the country is getting ready to host not just the European Games, but also the Formula One GrandPrix in 2016.

"If you look throughout the world, sport remains a very powerful mean of stimulating a closer relationship," he said.

Baku-2015 will host a total of 20 sports disciplines, with over 6,000 athletes coming to compete from across the Europe. Twelve of the sports will offer qualification opportunities for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games. Those sports include Archery, Athletics, Boxing, Cycling, Judo, Shooting, Swimming, Table Tennis, Taekwondo, Triathlon, Volleyball and Wrestling.

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