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Gala ceremony opening Baku 2015 European Games begins in Azerbaijan

The First European Games will be held in Baku on June 12 to 28, with athletes competing for 253 sets of medals in 20 sports

© Mikhail Dzhaparidze/TASS

BAKU, June 12. /TASS/. A gala ceremony opening the first ever European Games in Azerbaijan’s capital Baku has started at the Olympic stadium.

At least 2,000 volunteers from Azerbaijan and 17 countries are participating in the ceremony showcasing national culture to spectators. Dimitris Papaioannou, the Greek artistic director of the opening ceremony, staged the opening ceremony of the 2004 Olympics in Athens.

Olympic wrestling champion Khadzhimurat Gatsalov is named as the flag bearer of Russia while two-times Olympic champion in artistic gymnastics Yelena Zamolodchikova will carry the flag of the European Olympic Committees alongside other athletes.

The First European Games will be held in Baku on June 12 to 28, with athletes competing for 253 sets of medals in 20 sports.

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