The "Flame of Peace" relay was welcomed in Vitebsk

The Flame of Peace torch relay of the II European Games has started its journey through the Vitebsk region, BELTA correspondent reports.

The northern region received the relay from the Grodno region. The first facility visited by the flame of the II European Games was the "Vitba" confectionery factory, followed by the "Marko" LLC.

The first torchbearer was the First Deputy Minister of Culture of Belarus, Natalia Karchevskaya. "Very soon our country will become the venue for a huge celebration - not only sporting but also cultural. I am filled with pride that I will carry the flame of the II European Games in Vitebsk, the cultural capital of Belarus," noted Natalia Karchevskaya.

The Vitebsk region has delegated more than 30 representatives to the national team. "All of them have obvious potential and a champion's spirit. There is no doubt that they will perform with dignity in Minsk, demonstrate a winning attitude, and inscribe a bright page in the history of the Games with their achievements," emphasized Vladimir Terentyev, Chairman of the Vitebsk Regional Council of Deputies, at the ceremony.

The torch with the flame of the II European Games visited almost all the landmark sites of the city, including the City Hall, the Holy Assumption Cathedral, and the Marc Chagall House-Museum.

People well-known not only in the city but also beyond the borders of Belarus carried the flame of the II European Games through the streets of Vitebsk. Among them were renowned athletes, cultural and art figures, famous doctors and public figures, the best representatives of various professions, including People's Artist of Belarus Svetlana Okruzhna, Honoured Master of Sports, silver medallist of the 1980 Olympics Igor Kanygin, General Director of "Marko" SOOO, Honoured Worker of Industry of Belarus Nikolai Martynov, and Olympic champion Irina Krivko.

"Even when I was in Rome, lighting the flame among the first, I didn't think that when we brought it to Belarus, it would be such a grandiose and large-scale event. We were met with such joy. But the most pleasant thing is that the flame visited my hometown, Vitebsk," admitted Vladislav Goncharov, an Olympic champion in trampoline gymnastics.

The relay route started from Freedom Square and finished at Victory Square. A concert program awaited the guests of the celebration here.

Vitebsk became the third regional centre to host the "Flame of Peace". After that, the relay will travel around the region. On May 25, the flame will visit Polotsk at the Saint Sophia Cathedral and Novopolotsk, then it will head to Braslav, the "Yelnya" landscape reserve, Glubokoye, the Berezinsky Biosphere Reserve, and Orsha. The route of the relay is designed to showcase the region's identity, its main attractions, natural features, and important sites to the fullest extent. The flame of the II European Games will travel around the region until May 29, after which it will proceed to the Mogilev region.

The II European Games will be held in Minsk from June 21 to 30. More than 4,000 athletes from 50 countries will compete for 200 sets of medals in 15 sports.

Concurrently with the "Flame of Peace" relay, the fifth season of the charity project #velcombegom - the international campaign "European Runs" - is taking place in Belarus. The campaign is aimed at helping children with disabilities who are actively involved in sports and will represent Belarus in international competitions in the future. Over 50 days, participants are set to run a record 200,000 km. The total amount of charitable assistance from velcom | A1 will also be a record Br200,000. A distinctive feature of the "European Runs" will be the inclusion of the "Flame of Peace" relay distance, as well as the results of all track and field events within the II European Games, into the overall running kilometres tally.

Anyone who wishes to help children can go for runs at any convenient time between May 12 and June 30, record their running results using any fitness application installed on their smartphone, and share them on their social media pages with the hashtags #velcombegom, #A1, and #brightteam.

The "European Runs" campaign is organised by velcom | A1 in partnership with the "Directorate of the II European Games 2019" foundation, with the support of the Ministry of Sport and Tourism and the Paralympic Committee of Belarus.

News of Belarus (BELTA)