/ / News
23.08.2012

Lukashenko: Belarusian Olympians did a great job in London

MINSK, 23 August (BelTA) – Belarusian athletes have performed very well in London, President of the Republic of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko said at a meeting in Minsk on 23 August. He thanked champions and medal winners of the Olympic Games 2012, BelTA has learnt.

“These medals are not just a fair reward for the efforts of each athlete, but also a great pride for our country. Your successes inspired us and made us happy. I am sincerely grateful to you for a great performance in London,” the head of state said.

“In the conditions of a cut-throat competition, sometimes questionable refereeing, biased attitude on the part of individual international sports officials, you demonstrated extraordinary professionalism and will to victory,” the President said.

Alexander Lukashenko praised shooter Sergei Martynov who won a clear-cut victory and set two new world records, as well as Victoria Azarenka and Maxim Mirnyi. “They managed to defeat the hosts of the Wimbledon tennis court. It is a remarkable success,” the head of state said.

“Alexandra Gerasimenya’s performance was brilliant! She has become the first Olympic medalist in swimming in the history of independent Belarus. Now we have two medals. I hope that Sasha’s achievements will become a benchmark for others, including young athletes,” the President said.

Alexander Lukashenko thanked all the sportsmen for their extraordinary dedication, ambitions, excellent results, as well as coaches and many other people who contributed to the triumph of Belarusian Olympians. “I would like to say that we supported every our athlete. After all, the Olympic Games are a special competition requiring great concentration and psychological endurance,” the head of state said.

The President admitted that some tasks set for the Belarusian Olympic team were not fulfilled. “Unfortunately, not everyone managed to cope with the tension and concentrate amid a very tough competition. To put it straight, some were outright unprepared for the Olympic Games,” Alexander Lukashenko said. He added that this time Belarus performed worse than in the previous Olympic Games in terms of medals. In some sports the results were disheartening. The President promised that this situation will be thoroughly discussed after a detailed analysis of the performance of Belarusian athletes.

“The Olympic Games in Sochi and Rio de Janeiro are ahead. We need to find courage to admit the mistakes we made, learn from our experience and work very hard to achieve good results” the head of state said.

Alexander Lukashenko thanked the champions and medal winners of the Olympic Games 2012 again for their performance and patriotism demonstrated to the entire world. “Let your victories bring joy to our nation, let the pride for the country that raised you inspire fledgling athletes to reach new heights!” the President said.

Alexander Lukashenko presented state awards, letters of thanks and honorary titles to the Olympians and coaches.