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5th International ‘Children of Asia’ Games
Dmitry Glusko, vice-President of the Sakha (Yakutia) Republic
Today Yakutia gets ready to host the 5th International ‘Children of Asia’ Games.
These games have been held since 1996.
This unique competition is being held under the aegis of the International Olympic Committee and UNESCO.
Today the games are supported by the Olympic Council of Asia
and personally by the President of this organization, Sheikh Al-Sabah.
Young people up to 16 take part in these competitions.
The number of competitors increases by the year,
as well as the number of states taking part in it and the number of sporting disciplines represented.
This year 20 sports will be presented, including three programs for disabled sportsmen.
We expect sportsmen from 30 countries, more than 2,500 competitors.
Subjects of the Russian Federation also participate in the event.
Russia will be represented by teams from Siberia, the Urals and the Far East,
as well as from Sakha and teams from Moscow, Tatarstan and Bashkortostan,
which are allowed to participate in the event under a special decree.
I would like to say that interest in the Games is increasing,
as their winners later often become sportsmen famous all over the world.
Today dozens of them have become Olympic winners,
as well as of various other prestigious international and continental contests.
Apart from Asian countries, three states that are situated on the border between Europe and Asia take part in our Games:
two ex-Soviet republics (Armenia and Azerbaijan) and Turkey.
And in general all the CIS countries take part in the Games.
I would like to pay special attention to the teams of Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan,
which prepare for the Games very seriously and choose their sportsmen very carefully.
Today the Olympic Committees of each respective country form the national teams for the ‘Children of Asia’ Games.
The bodies for control over youth sport also take part in this process,
but the presence of the Olympic Committees is most important.
We construct new sporting facilities for the Games each year.
So the Games make a great contribution to the economic development of our republic.
We are constructing five major sporting facilitates for this year’s Games, as well as new airport terminals.
We are renewing the road system of Yakutsk so that our guests can feel comfortable
and perform superbly and go home with medals.
This project was conceived in the republic of Yakutia and all the Games were held here.
Under the proposal of the Asian Olympic Council,
this year we will hold a meeting to create an international council for the ‘Children of Asia’ Games.
And after that this organization will arrange the Games,
but the charter of this new organization will still keep the special role of Yakutia as the founder of the Games.
And of course we will try to host the games in the future,
even though other states have a great interest in the role of the host too.
Turkey took part in at least three competitions.
The teams that came from this country were always victorious.
I would like to point out the country’s football and basketball teams:
these teams were victorious in our competitions and then they became youth champions of Europe.
Armenia and Azerbaijan always participate in our Games.
Their teams are pretty good, especially the wrestling teams, boxing, judo.
They are serious rivals. As for Kazakhstan, it is also the most numerous of the CIS teams,
some 100-150 members. They are very good sportsmen.
The best known of the Kazakh sportsmen is probably Maxim Rakov,
who later became Olympic judo champion.
And also Leonid Spiridonov, who is Yakut by birth, so we are very proud of him,
performed for the Kazakh team, won our competition and participated in the Olympics twice,
and is a candidate for the Kazakh London-2012 Olympic national wrestling team.