This week I am in Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, soaking up the spectacle of the inaugural European Games. As a commentator and journalist, I have to fully immerse myself in the event so it’s difficult to gauge, from this far flung corner of Europe, what kind of impact the competition is having at home.
The Games were conceived just three years ago, will be held every four and are vying for Olympic credibility on a European scale. The host city of Baku proudly boasts a rich cultural heritage and has undergone huge redevelopment in recent years thanks to a thriving petroleum industry. Azerbaijan seized the opportunity to showcase itself on Friday night during a spectacular opening ceremony featuring over a thousand dancers, an enormous hydraulic stage and a performance by the pop singer Lady Gaga.
A significant challenge for these games is the credibility of individual events. A few of the major sports have insisted it remains as a junior level competition so as not to detract from the European or World Championships that they organise themselves. An outsider might imagine that the major sports would be happy to take advantage of the world class facilities in Baku and pass on the administrative burden but there are other financial factors at play. For example, swimming and athletics can sell the television rights as well as gain huge sponsorship deals when owning the big meets themselves. As a result all of the aquatics disciplines are under eighteen and athletics has been graded a third tier event. On the other hand there are several ‘Road to Rio’ qualifiers throughout the seventeen days and TeamGB have already experienced success in the men’s triathlon.
As a commentator and spectator, living and breathing the event, it feels a success. It will be interesting to see how the rest of the world views Baku and its European Games.
No comments:
Post a Comment