Turkey is ready for hosting its first event of Olympic status, as some 3.000 athletes will participate in the 11th edition of the European Youth Olympic Festival in Trabzon. Authorities believe the province is ready for the event
The mascot for the 11th edition of the European Youth Olympics Festival is anchovy, the fish which the northwestern city of Trabzon is known to have a fondness for.
The most talented young athletes from 49 countries will compete for gold in Trabzon from July 24 to July 29, as Turkey prepares to host the European Youth Olympic Festival for the first time.
Following an opening ceremony Saturday, the 11th edition of the Youth Olympic Festival, known by its initials EYOF, will begin Sunday with nearly 3,000 athletes, the event’s largest number of participants in the games’ history, competing for victory.
Trabzon Mayor Dr. Orhan Fevzi Gümrükçüoğlu said the province was prepared to host the event, the first time Turkey has staged an Olympic competition.
“This is a historical opportunity for Trabzon and the city is doing its best to make the most out of this opportunity,” he said. “I urge Trabzon residents to show their hospitality in accordance with the Olympic spirit.”
“European youth will be welcome in our city and they will be hosted in our Olympic Village in the best possible way,” said the games’ general manager, Nihat Doker.
The head of the EYOF 2011 Trabzon Coordination Commission, Jozef Liba, believes Trabzon will be able to host the events successfully.
“I believe that the organization will be the best one in the history of the European Youth Olympic Festivals,” Liba said.
It is a biennial, multi-sport event for youth athletes from the 49 member countries of the Association of European Olympic Committees. EYOF has a summer edition, which was held for the first time in Brussels in 1991, and a winter edition, which began two years later in Aosta. EYOF is the only all-European multi-sport event.
Turkey’s young Olympic team
The Turkish squad, consisting of 140 athletes, 68 of whom are female, will compete in all nine categories at the event, including basketball, handball, volleyball, athletics, cycling, judo, tennis, swimming and gymnastics. Turkey has previously participated in eight of the 10 games; its most successful campaign was the 2009 edition in Tampere, Finland, when Turkish athletes won four gold, one silver and six bronze medals.
Turkey’s medal hopes focus on volleyball in team sports, and it is the only team sport in which Turkey has ever won a team gold in the games’ history. Standing in their way, however, is Russia, which has won the competition six times.
In men’s volleyball, the dominant side is Poland, who has won both of gold medals when the sport was included in the games.
In individual sports, athletics is one of Turkey’s strong points. Turkey’s athletes have won 12 medals in athletics to date. Judo follows track and field events with 10 medals
