Today, on September 28, the official opening ceremony of the 3rd CIS Games was held at the Ganja Stadium, which was put into operation yesterday, with the participation of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev.
First, the National flag of the Republic of Azerbaijan was raised, and the national anthem was played. Then the parade of the participating countries of the 3rd CIS Games took place. The flag of Azerbaijan was carried by karateka Asiman Gurbanli and taekwondo athlete Zemfira Hasanzade.
Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Chairman of the Organizing Committee of the 3rd CIS Games Samir Sharifov addressed the ceremony and welcomed the guests, athletes, coaches and sports enthusiasts. He noted that 2 400 sports delegations from the countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States, as well as from Turkey, Pakistan, Oman, Cuba and Kuwait, will take part in the competition, which will last 10 days. “These sports games will become a platform for a fair struggle based on principles such as friendship, peace, and mutual respect, and will make an important contribution to expanding cooperation between our countries and peoples and deepening relations,” said the Chairman of the Organizing Committee.
Then CIS Deputy Secretary General Nurlan Seytimov made a speech. He voiced the appeal of the Secretary General of the CIS Sergey Lebedev to the organizers, participants and guests. N.Seitimov expressed confidence that the 3rd CIS Games will leave a bright mark in the history of the CIS sports movement and will serve to further strengthen cooperation.
After that, the swearing-in ceremony of the 3rd CIS Games took place. On behalf of the athletes, the captain of the Azerbaijani national chovgan team, world and European champion Elchin Jamalli, was sworn in, on behalf of the coaches – the head coach of the national freestyle wrestling team Askerkhan Novruzov, and on behalf of the judges – the international class rhythmic gymnastics judge Laman Jabrailova.
The President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev declared the 3rd CIS Games officially open. After that, the CIS flag was raised to the sounds of the official song of the Games.
The opening ceremony continued with the artistic part.
The opening ceremony continued with the artistic part. The audience watched the grandiose performance of Karabakh horses. In addition, white doves were released into the sky, symbolizing peace. The opening ceremony ended with a drone show and a grand fireworks display.
It should be noted that the closing ceremony of the Games will be held on October 8 at the Ganja Stadium.
