2018-11-27
"Investments made in sports are truly vigorous, most lasting and - I would say - supremely national" stated Mamuka Bakhtadze, Prime Minister of Georgia at a meeting with Georgian athletes held today at the Townhall of Tbilisi.
Head of Government of Georgia expressed his gratitude to sportsmen and noted that each of them is a genuine hero for the country.
"I was engaged in active sports myself and know it well that every victory is all about a titanic effort, however if we look at it from the emotional view point, each gold, silver or bronze medal and anthem heard or flag waved at the tournament brings overwhelming emotions. Nothing can compete with this outstanding feeling. Each victory is of paramount importance for every Georgian, as what we need most is victories" added the Prime Minister of Georgia.
In the opinion of the Head of Government of Georgia, 2018 has turned out to be a unique year, as Georgian athletes have won 800 medals.
"It is an absolutely sensational victory. Much larger nations may not even dream about such scale and magnitude. This sincere gratitude goes to you, along with our celebrity veteran sportsmen, who paved the way to your success and you will also pave the way to future generations to strengthen the momentum of success. Sport is a healthy life style. It is the main source of energy, which should exist in a healthy society. Indeed, we still have a lot to do, however one thing needs to be said in an objective manner that our most targeted policy has contributed to this together with the great Georgian talent, as our efforts have been abundant in the past five or six years" noted the Prime Minister of Georgia.
According to the Head of Government of Georgia, investments into sports infrastructure have been increased, though this is by no means sufficient. Prime Minister of Georgia believes that success in the professional sports should be based upon a wide-scale engagement of the society.
"Countries of the central Europe serve as a role model to me, as 60-70% of the youth is engaged in mass sports. We should also aim at such high indicator, which will turn into the next boundless victory. I also need to stress that it does not matter to us whether success is achieved in Olympic, non-Olympic or Paralympic sports. Georgian nation craves for success and you are the main source of it. I am confident that in other directions, we will be equally successful. I need to particularly note the truly unique results of our Paralympic sportsmen in the recent part. I am profoundly proud that Georgia is the only country, which has the duly adapted infrastructure, however it is natural that this is not sufficient either. We should become one of the key global centers of development in sports. This will require adequate infrastructure in every region of the country. I wish to assure you that we will be pursuing this policy further. Investments made in sports are truly vigorous, most lasting and - I would say - supremely national. I wish to thank sincerely each and every one of you. I am convinced that our athletes have plenty of victories ahead of them" concluded the Prime Minister of Georgia.
Head of Government of Georgia stressed the accession of Georgia to the European Academy and noted this fact as a tremendous achievement in the education system.
"From my standpoint, unity of sports, traditions, culture and education, of course, is an ideal mix. I believe that their unity is a pre-requisite of success. Today we have even higher achievement - very important gold medal in the education system. Georgia has been accepted by the Academy of Europe and we are the first and the only non-EU country that has achieved this" added the Prime Minister of Georgia.
Head of Government of Georgia thanked everyone contributing to this success and expressed hopes that such consistent endeavor and spirit of wholesomeness will lead to similar success of the country in other dimensions, being inspired by sports in 2018.
Meeting was attended by almost 500 athletes; Mikheil Batiashvili, Minister of Education, Culture and Sports of Georgia; Kakha Kaladze, Mayor of Tbilisi.