Banská Bystrica is the ideal place for the EYOF organisation, according to the Sports Director of the EOC

Banská Bystrica is still intensively preparing for the XVI. summer European Olympic Youth Festival (EYOF), which will take place at the end of July 2022. European Olympic Committees (EOC) appreciate the progress of preparations, according to their sports director Peter Brüll, Slovakia would be ready to organize the event in the original term in July 2021.

The preparations of multi-sport event, which will be attended by 3,600 athletes aged fourteen to eighteen and members of their teams from 50 European countries, is coordinated by an organizing committee led by its President and Mayor of the city of Banská Bystrica Ján Nosko and CEO Peter Korčok. Members of the organising committee evaluate the progress of the preparatory work at regular meetings. At present, the construction of the National Athletic Stadium is significantly advancing, modifications of other sports facilities are being prepared, and university dormitories are being modernized.

The sports director of the EOC, Peter Brüll, and the director of the Department of Economic Activities in Sport at Ministry of Education, Science, Research and Sport of the Slovak Republic, Pavol Swiec, also took part in the August meeting at the EYOF 2022 headquarters. “Banská Bystrica will be a good host. It was already ready for the EYOF in 2021. We would not have had to move the event if the Tokyo Olympics had not moved. In the National Olympic Committees, the same people take part in the preparations for the Olympic Games and the EYOF. The people in Banská Bystrica won an extra year and EYOF can be even better”, said Peter Brüll after visiting Banská Bystrica.

According to the sports director of the EOC, the extra year will always help in the preparation of a similar multi-sport event. The organisers will be given space for better preparation of sports facilities and accommodation capacities. “The postponement of the event did not significantly affect the activities of the organising committee. It is good that organising committee continues to meet and work. The change of the term is in many aspects more positive than negative. The most important thing is to make a good budget, as the preparation period has been extended”, said Brüll, who will visit Banská Bystrica again, probably at the end of October, together with members of the Coordination Committee of the EYOF 2022. They will see on the spot how the organisers have progressed with the preparations. The visit was originally scheduled to take place in April but it was postponed due to the pandemic. The Coordinating Commission always visits the EYOF venue at least once before a multi-sport meeting of young athletes.

There is quite a lot of interest in organising the EYOF in Europe, since the event was established in 1991, it has already taken place in two thirds of European countries. Suitable cities for the EYOF are similar in size to Banská Bystrica. Above all, sports and accommodation infrastructure are needed. “Banská Bystrica is neither too small nor too big city to organise EYOF. In large cities, similar events are lost, in small ones they have big problems. The advantage of Banská Bystrica is that it has enough university dormitories so there is the possibility of accommodating young participants in the summer. Many applicants had to cancel their candidacy for the EYOF, as accommodating more than 5,000 people in hotels alone during the summer season is a problem everywhere”, added Peter Brüll.

The previous EYOF organizers benefited in particular from the event. Cities have become more widely known in the sports community in Europe, and sports infrastructure and accommodation have developed. “EYOF also had a positive impact on children’s sports and physical activities in the organising cities. Their interest increased and they were able to use the modernized sports facilities. The same intention is in Banská Bystrica. The EOC also wants the city to benefit from the event. The intention is that EYOF will leave some legacy in Banská Bystrica and, above all, the importance of sports and physical activities will be strengthened”, added the sports director of the EOC.