20 November, Vitebsk /Sergey Kochetov - BELTA/. The core of the Belarusian national team for the 2012 London Olympics has been practically formed. This was announced to a BELTA correspondent by Gennady Alekseenko, Vice-President of the National Olympic Committee of Belarus. In Vitebsk, he participated in the opening ceremony of a stele with a commemorative medal of the Beijing Olympics silver medalist Vadim Devyatovsky. Preparations for the London Games began immediately after the Beijing Olympics concluded. "The Ministry of Sport is conducting an assessment, and the backbone of the 2012 Olympic team is already practically taking shape," said Gennady Alekseenko. The number of contenders for the team has narrowed, but these are the athletes who will be purposefully preparing for the Olympics. They will be provided with the necessary support to achieve the maximum result at the upcoming Games. Assessing Vadim Devyatovsky's preparation prospects, the NOC Vice-President noted that, considering the lengthy forced break, the athlete is training according to an individual program and will independently make decisions about participating in any competitions. "For Vadim, the main goal today is London; he is an experienced athlete and will not force his preparation for any other starts," Gennady Alekseenko is confident. -0-

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