President Victor Yushchenko, First Deputy
Chief-of-Staff Ivan Vasyunyk and Youth and Sports Minister Yuriy
Pavlenko met with Ukraine's Olympic team that will represent Ukraine at the
2006 Winter Olympics in the Italian city of Turin, President's press office reported.
The Head of State emphasized the significance of the
Olympic Games and remarked that this competition of the international
community combined physical struggle and desire to promote profound
human values.
“I think humanity no longer looks at the Olympics
through the prism of sports. I think we all see the games consolidate
and change the world and strengthen nations,” he said.
Addressing
the athletes, Yushchenko stressed they were all going on a vital and
“extremely responsible” mission to represent the independent country
with “century long traditions” to prove that we have gifted athletes
that can win and professional coaches that can train them.
The President wished them Olympic triumphs in Turin.
“Millions of Ukrainians will watch you compete and
they will pray for your efforts. I would like to ask you to preserve
Ukraine in your hearts. I want you to fulfill all your abilities and
wish you victories and eternal faith, love and hope,” he said.
Then the President asked if they were satisfied with
their training conditions and wanted to learn about their most pressing
problems. He particularly said over the past three years the Tysovets
Olympic Center had been reequipped to meet their needs and demands and
pledged to build and renovate other training grounds.
National Olympic Committee President Serhiy Bubka,
who attended the meeting, told him there were not many problems to
prepare the team for the Olympics and said they were all willing to
fight. Today, at 6 PM, the athletes will take part in a send-off
ceremony in Kyiv’s Independence Square. Bubka also said most of them
were already in Turin preparing for the competitions.
The President said he had signed an order to
establish a National Sports Council. He will personally head it. Its
members are: Vitaly Klytchko, Serhiy Bubka, Ivan Vasyunyk, Vyacheslav
Kyrylenko, Yuriy Pavlenko, Volodymyr Brynzak, and Oleksandr Volkov. He
suggested that they should hold their first meeting after the Olympics.
Yushchenko believes the council should formulate a plan to develop
sports in 2006 and carry out specific programs.
“I am convinced in 2006 we will launch key sports programs,” he asserted.
Then the Head of State and his wife were presented
with Ukraine’s Olympic uniform. The athletes asked Yushchenko to sign
their flag, and he wrote: “I wish you success! Ukraine loves you and is
proud of you! Win!”
