2015 European Games
The 1st European Games, also known as the 2015 European Games or Baku 2015, were the inaugural edition of the European Games, an international multi-sport event for athletes representing the National Olympic Committees of the European Olympic Committees. It took place in Baku, Azerbaijan, from 12 to 28 June 2015, and featured almost 6,000 athletes from 50 countries competing in 30 sports, including 15 summer Olympic and 2 non-Olympic sports.
Host selection
Baku was awarded the right to host the first European Games at the 41st EOC General Assembly in Rome, on 8 December 2012. The European Games would take place every four years thereafter, with the next competition held in 2019.The decision was made as a result of secret balloting, where of 48 votes, 38 were in favour of the sole bidder for the event. Eight votes were against, and two more abstained from voting. The representatives of Armenia refused to take part in the voting.
Organisation
The Organising Committee responsible for the inaugural European Games in Baku was established by decree of the president of the Republic of Azerbaijan. The committee is chaired by the First Lady of Azerbaijan Mehriban Aliyeva, member of the Executive Committee of the National Olympic Committee of the Republic of Azerbaijan and UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador. Baku 2015 European Games Operations Committee was established under the direction of the chairperson of the Organising Committee.The Chief Executive Officer of BEGOC is Azad Rahimov, Minister of Youth and Sport while the Chief Operating Officer is Simon Clegg.
Venues
There were four clusters and 18 competition venues for the inaugural European Games, including 12 that were designed to become permanent venues. Five of the venues were new-builds: the National Gymnastics Arena, BMX Velopark, Baku Aquatics Centre, Baku Shooting Centre and National Stadium.There were six temporary venues: Water Polo Arena, Beach Arena, Basketball Arena, Mountain Bike Velopark, Triathlon, Cycling road race and time trial.
The Athletes Village, located in the Nizami raion of Baku, comprises 13 buildings, 16 different types of apartments with three to four bedrooms per apartment.
| E | Existing |
| N | New |
| T | Temporary |
;Village cluster
| Venue | Sports | Capacity | |
| Baku National Stadium | Ceremonies, athletics | 68,000 | N |
| National Gymnastics Arena | Gymnastics | 6,862 | N |
;Flag square cluster
| Venue | Sports | Capacity | |
| Baku Aquatics Centre | Swimming, diving, synchronized swimming | 6,000 | N |
| Water Polo Arena | Water polo | 2,400 | T |
| Beach Arena | Beach soccer, beach volleyball | 3,900 | T |
| Basketball Arena | 3x3 basketball | 2,500 | T |
| Crystal Hall | Volleyball | 6,000 | E |
| Crystal Hall | Boxing | 3,400 | E |
| Crystal Hall | Fencing, karate, taekwondo | 2,000 | E |
;City cluster
| Venue | Sports | Capacity | |
| Baku Sports Hall | Badminton, table tennis | 1,700 | E |
| Tofiq Bahramov Stadium | Archery | 31,200 | E |
| Heydar Aliyev Arena | Judo, wrestling, sambo | 7,700 | E |
;Other venues
| Venue | Sports | Capacity | |
| Baku Shooting Centre | Shooting | 500 | N |
| Mountain Bike Velopark | Mountain biking | 1,670 | T |
| BMX Velopark | Cycling BMX | 1,600 | N |
| Bilgah Beach | Triathlon | 1,500 | T |
| Kur Sport and Rowing Centre, Mingachevir | Canoe sprint | 1,300 | E |
Bilgəh beach — road cycling time trials
Ticketing
The local organising committee launched an on its website to allow fans purchasing tickets for the inaugural event.Adult tickets for sport sessions range between AZN 2 – AZN 5, according to competition round, seat category, and venue.
Volunteers
Organisers aimed to recruit 12,500 volunteers to play roles during the Games, including assisting athletes and dignitaries, working at sport competitions, or providing assistance to spectators or the media. Baku 2015 European Games volunteers were called Flamekeepers. 6,000 Ceremonies Performers voluntarily took part in the opening and closing ceremonies.Opening ceremony
Closing ceremony
The closing ceremony was held on 28 June in the National Stadium. James Hadley was the artistic director and Christian Steinhäuser the music director of the closing ceremony.Games
Participating NOCs
50 national olympic committees participated in this European Games edition, including the Olympic Committee of Kosovo in its first time at a wide multi-sport event. Since the Faroe Islands and Gibraltar are not members of the European Olympic Committee, the Faroese participants occurred for the Ligue Européenne de Natation and the Gibraltar participants for the Athletic Association of Small States of Europe.| Participating National Olympic Committees | ||||||||
Medal tablePodium sweepsBroadcastingThe International Sports Broadcasting and Olympic Broadcasting Services are the host broadcasters of the European Games. During the Games, ISB was anticipated to produce 800 hours of broadcast coverage.Europe
Human rights situation and media banshave been a vocal critic of the Baku 2015 European Games, stating in March 2015, "Azerbaijan may be a safe country for athletes taking part in the 100 metres, but defending rights and free speech is a dangerous game here. Those who champion them receive harassment and prison sentences instead of medals.". In August 2014, the human rights organisation highlighted the 24 prisoners of conscience being held in Azerbaijan prisons as an example of abuses. Western countries also criticized Aliyev's intention to close the OSCE offices in Baku.In June 2015, The Guardian reported that its own reporters, along with those of other media outlets, had been barred from entering Baku to cover the games. Human Rights Watch, in the same article, stated it had observed "the worst crackdown the country has seen in the post-Soviet era". Most European heads of state and government refused to participate at the opening ceremony, sending mid- or low-level representatives instead. Among those who did participate were Vladimir Putin of Russia, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan of Turkey, Aleksander Lukashenko of Belarus, Boyko Borisov of Bulgaria and Victor Ponta of Romania. Ponta and Borisov faced criticism at home for their participation. Bus accidentDuring the games there was a road accident where a coach driver drove into a group of young Austrian athletes by mixing up the accelerator and brake pedals, with the incident recorded by a surveillance camera. 15-year-old Austrian synchronized swimmer Vanessa Sahinovic and her teammates Lisa Breit and Luna Pajer were injured. Sahinovic was placed in an induced coma and flown to Vienna for emergency surgery. Sahinovic was left paraplegic in the accident. Because of the accident, Austria had to withdraw from the team competition. In the synchronized swimming duet competition, sisters Anna-Maria and Eirini-Maria Alexandri won the silver medal, which they dedicated to the injured teammates. The police officer who released the video of the surveillance camera was relieved of his duties. Sahinovic is recovering, and is supported by an initiative of Austrian swimmers and a fundraising campaign. |
Albania|2015 European Games|28