The flag of the European Games handed over to the mayor of Nowy Sącz

Nowy Sącz will be one of the host cities of the III European Games Kraków-Małopolska 2023. The symbol of taking over this role was Monday’s handover of the European Games’ flag to the city’s president, Ludomir Handzel. The official handing over was done by the Marshal of the Małopolska Region Witold Kozłowski, and the President of the Organising Committee Marcin Nowak.

Among the guest at the ceremony hosted by Town Hall were Senator of the Republic of Poland Wiktor Durlak, MP Patryk Wicher, Marshal of the Malopolska Region Witold Kozłowski, Mayor of Nowy Sącz Ludomir Handzel and President of the European Games Organising Committee Marcin Nowak. There were also representatives of youth sport. The handover of the flag was also admired by athletes from the IV St. Kinga Sports High School in Nowy Sącz.

The meeting began with the official handover of the flag of the European Games. The original one was received from the hands of the President of the European Olympic Committees Spyros Kapralos at the end of September last year in Olympia, by the Marshal of the Małopolska Region Witold Kozłowski. It was him, who handed over a replica of the flag to Marcin Nowak, who in turn presented it to President Ludomir Handzl.

Marshal Witold Kozłowski, recalling the history of the ancient Olympic Games, emphasized the fact that there was always a two-month period of peace while it lasted. The intention was that all athletes would be able to safely get to the place of competition and then return home peacefully. “We would also like the warfare across our eastern border to finally stop with the start of the Kraków-Małopolska 2023 European Games. It would be a dream situation if, in the year of the Games, we learned about the complete end of the war, which began after Russia’s attack on independent Ukraine,” said Witold Kozłowski, explaining why there will be no place for athletes from Russia and Ukraine in this year’s competition.

“Today, as the mayor of Nowy Sącz, I am very happy, because we will be hosting the biggest sports event of next year in our city. This is a good moment to thank all the good people who made this possible. And I have to assure you, that here on the stage, also the good people are standing,” said Ludomir Handzel.

The president of the Organising Committee, Marcin Nowak, stressed the role of young people in popularizing sports and healthy lifestyles. “I am glad that so many young people from the sports high school are with us today, because this event is primarily for you. You have chosen the path of an athlete, and I hope that throughout your lives you will be ambassadors of physical culture and the values and ideals that sports teach us. With fair play in the first place,” he said, addressing the students.

During this year’s European Games, Nowy Sącz will host a competition in breaking. The arena for this new Olympic sport will be the Strzelecki Park. The largest multidisciplinary sports event in 2023 will begin on June 21 and end on July 2. Around 7,000 athletes will compete in nearly 30 sports, for European Games medals and, in the case of 19 sports, to qualify for Olympic Games in Paris.