The World Universiade, to be held in the Rhine-Ruhr region of Germany, is just a week away. At the multi-forum, there will be a fight for 234 sets of medals in 18 sports. The Azerbaijani team is also entering the final stage of preparation for the competition.
Idman.biz presents interesting facts about the Universiade, which will be held on July 16-27.
Six cities
The main competitions will be held in five cities of the Rhine-Ruhr agglomeration: Bochum, Duisburg, Essen, Mülheim an der Ruhr and Hagen.
Berlin will also join them - swimming, diving and volleyball competitions will be held in the country's capital.
Previously, the Universiade was held in Germany only once - in Duisburg in 1989.
Competition program
The program includes judo, athletics, basketball, 3x3 basketball, water polo, swimming, diving, volleyball, beach volleyball, rowing, tennis, table tennis, badminton, artistic gymnastics, rhythmic gymnastics, archery, taekwondo and fencing.
For the first time, wheelchair 3x3 basketball has also been included in the program - this is the first Paralympic sport in the history of the Summer Universiade.
Scope of the event
The Universiade will be attended by approximately 8,500 athletes and officials from approximately 150-170 countries.
The opening of the multi-forum will take place on July 16 at the "MSV Arena" in Duisburg. The closing will take place on July 27 at "Landschaftspark Duisburg Nord."
The competitions will be held in 23 sports facilities.
The organizers pay special attention to sustainable development: only existing and temporary facilities will be used, and the infrastructure will be changed to a minimum.
At the same time, the Universiade will also include a cultural and educational program. This program includes the conference of the International University Sports Federation (July 17–19, Bochum), as well as concerts and festivals in the cities where the competitions are held.
Composition of the Azerbaijani team
A number of leading Azerbaijani athletes will participate in the Universiade. Our judo team is particularly noteworthy. The squad includes Eljan Hajiyev (90 kg), the European champion of last year and bronze medalist of the world championship. He is one of the main favorites in his weight category.
We can also mention the group exercises team. Our gymnasts will perform in group competitions for the first time at the Universiade.
Azerbaijan will also be represented in athletics, swimming, taekwondo and other sports.
What does the statistics say?
At the Universiade held in Chengdu two years ago, Azerbaijan took 38th place in the overall standings with nine medals - three silver and six bronze. These awards were won in judo, rhythmic gymnastics, rowing and taekwondo.
In the overall standings, we are in 41st place in the history of the Summer Universiade. During this period, our athletes won 49 awards (13 gold, 14 silver, 22 bronze).
Zaki Feyzullayev
Idman.biz