700 athletes gathered for Barents Games
TROMSØ: Youth from all four Barents countries competing in nine different sports gathered for the first Barents Winter Games. See the photos.
Barents Matches have been held for all kinds of sports since the establishment of the Barents Region, but never at the same location. With the Barents Games all matches are gathered in one huge sports event, where almost the entire sports family of the Barents Region participates.
“This is a milestone for sports cooperation in the Barents Region and something we have been working for to achieve for many years”, says Claes Gregart from the committee of Barents sports.
The event in Tromsø was a winter Barents Games, though not all participating sports were winter sports. There were matches in ice hockey, biathlon, futsal, floorball, wrestling, table tennis, badminton, gymnastics and shooting.
The head of the Norwegian Sports Association, Inge Andersen was also present in Tromsø.
“A sports event like this is fantastic. We see young people connecting across borders and creating new arenas for common interests”, says Andersen to newspaper Nordlys.
The next Barents Games will be held in Oulu in august 2015, where it will be a summer Barents Games.
