Lausanne, Switzerland; 18 January 2018: European Olympic Committees (EOC) President Janez Kocijančič led a constructive first meeting of the newly elected Executive Committee (EC) today, with preparations for the Minsk 2019 European Games a key item on the agenda.

The meeting was the first gathering of the new EC for the 2017-2021 quadrennial, which was elected at the 46^th EOC General Assembly in Zagreb in November last year. Kocijančič, who served as Acting President for 15 months before being unanimously elected as President in Zagreb, praised the efforts of the newly elected EC and pledged to keep working hard to provide the 50 European National Olympic Committees (NOCs) with the support they need.

International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach attended the meeting and updated the EOC EC on the latest issues in the Olympic Movement. Last night, President Bach hosted a welcome dinner for the new EC at the Lausanne Palace Hotel. Kocijančič thanked the IOC for their ongoing support and pledged the EOC’s full support to the IOC for their decision regarding Russia’s participation at the PyeongChang 2018 Olympic Winter Games.

Minsk 2019 European Games Organising Committee (MEGOC) CEO George Katulin and Coordination Commission Chair Spyros Capralos updated the EC on the progress of the organisation of the second edition of the EOC’s flagship event. Katulin presented several small changes to the sports programme, notably the increase in medal events from 198 to 208. Archery will now have three more medal events, wrestling freestyle, wrestling women and wrestling Greco-Roman two more each, and canoe sprint one more.

Speaking after the meeting, EOC President Janez Kocijančič said:

“I am pleased with the progress we have made today and the number of important topics we have been able to cover in detail. In particular, I would like to congratulate the Minsk 2019 European Games Coordination Commission and the MEGOC for their continued hard work and efficiency. It is normal to encounter problems when you are organising events on this scale, but the devotion of everyone involved enables us to quickly overcome any problems we may face.

“I have every confidence that the Minsk Games will provide a dynamic blueprint, aligned with the principles of Olympic Agenda 2020, for future editions to follow. Each country is different and it is important to have an adaptable model that will encourage countries of all sizes to tender for the Games in the years to come.”

Association of National Olympic Committee (ANOC) Secretary General Gunilla Lindberg, who serves as an ex-officio member on the EOC EC, provided an update on the activities of the ANOC. EOC Secretary General Raffaele Pagnozzi and Treasurer Kikis Lazarides both gave reports to the EC, and the structure of the EOC commissions for the 2017-2021 quadrennial was established.

According to http://www.eurolympic.org

Directorate of the 2nd European Games in 2019 sent 86 own volunteers to work at the Track Cycling World Cup, which is starting at the Minsk-Arena velodrome on January 19. The future volunteers of the Games have been actively helping the organizers since January 15. Volunteers involved in the managing arrivals and departures of teams began to work first. Guys will also help with the accommodation of guests in hotels, the procedure for accreditation, escorting VIP guests and ensuring the work of the VIP-zone. Volunteers are involved in work directly at the velodrome, assigned to the officials, participate in the opening, rewarding and closing ceremonies as well. The big responsibility is allocated to volunteers-chaperones who will work together with doping-officers after special training. The most active volunteers showing interest in the HR sphere were entrusted with the role of volunteer management. They were chosen for the leadership position during the information meetings in Belarusian universities organized by the representatives of the Directorate of the 2nd European Games.

Volunteers from four higher educational institutions of Minsk will work at the velodrome. Each of them has a good command of English, as well as knowledge of the second European language: German, Spanish, Swedish, etc.

The opening ceremony of the Track Cycling World Cup will be held on January 19 at the Velodrome of the Minsk-Arena and will start at 5:40 p.m. In addition, national team for the current competition will be presented to the journalists and fans today at 4 p.m. at the Victoria Olimp Hotel.

A brand new form of athletics was given its first official examination at a test event staged at the Complexo Desportivo in Vila Real de Santo Antonio, Portugal  with the support and organisation of the Portuguese Athletics Federation and the Algarve Athletics Association.

The new form of track and field that European Athletics has called Dynamic New Athletics (DNA) is an innovative two hour-long, team-focused competition with teams competing across 10 events focusing on the three key elements of athletics: running, jumping and throwing. The event incorporates the traditional pillars of athletics but in a manner which fosters greater athlete interaction and emphasises the team dynamics and head-to-head competition.

An event incorporating the key themes of Dynamic New Athletics will be unveiled at the 2nd European Games 2019 in Minsk, Belarus from 21-30 June after an agreement was signed between European Athletics President Svein Arne Hansen and European Olympic Committees (EOC) Acting President Janez Kocijancic in November.

“It is great to see an athletics event where every single moment matters. This new format complements the current sport and is different because it is not about world records or great times. It is about beating the opponent that is put in front of you,” said European Athletics President Svein Arne Hansen.

The test event in Algarve featured six teams taking part in the 10 events which make up the prospective schedule for the European Games including the trackathlon (a combination of running, shot put, hurdles and a standing long jump); the mixed 4x400m relay; and “The Hunt” – a mixed distance pursuit relay (800m-600m-400m-200m) to conclude proceedings. The winner in each individual event scored 12 points for their respective teams which went towards their team’s overall score.

Spanish-based team Andalucia claimed the overall title at the test event after going into the final race with 104 points and winning the Hunt. Sporting Lisboa & Benfica collected second place with Juventude Vidigalense from Leiria finishing third. The test event elicited positive feedback from participants, coaches and stakeholders alike.

“It was an honour to witness the landmark moment to test a new athletics format. I feel like this weekend I saw the future of athletics unfold in front of my eyes. It went incredibly well,” said Libor Varhanik, the European Athletics Council Member responsible for the project.

“Obviously there is still lots of work ahead of us to refine the concept but it is great to see we are on track.”

At the test event, the OpenTrack platform by ReportLab was used to collect and process all the results. Results were published live on the dedicated website https://dna.run/, also powered by ReportLab.

The format for the 2019 European Games will be finalised at the upcoming European Athletics Council Meeting in April ahead of the next test event which will be held in Minsk on 2-3 July.

According to http://www.european-athletics.org