TIRANA, August 9 – Prime Minister Edi Rama went to Turkey on an official visit at the invitation of the Turkish President, Recep Tayyip Erdogan to attend the opening ceremony the fifth edition of the Islamic Solidarity Games on Tuesday and to hold important talks in Ankara on the progress of cooperation projects between Albania and Turkey.
The announcement was made public by Rama himself in a post on social networks.
The central Turkish province of Konya is set to host the fifth edition of the Islamic Solidarity Games. On Tuesday, the official opening ceremony will be held while qualification rounds have already begun for the international event.
“At the invitation of President Erdogan for the opening ceremony of the Islamic Solidarity Games, where the Albanian Olympic team also participates, as well as for an important working meeting in Ankara on the progress of cooperation projects between Albania and Turkey,” said Prime Minister Edi Rama on his social networks, alongside a video of the visit.
More than 4,000 athletes from 56 countries will participate in the tournament, which will end on August 18. Athletes and teams will compete in 24 fields. Turkey joins the games with 461 athletes in all fields in the central Turkish province of Konya.
The Albanian Olympic team takes part in the Games, as Rama said, but it is not known how many athletes are representing Albania.
The games were postponed one year due to restrictions stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic. This year, some 355 medals are up for grabs for athletes.
The Islamic Solidarity Games were first hosted by Jeddah of Saudi Arabia in 2005. The idea is the development of athletes and to boost solidarity and ties through sports between the countries of the Muslim world. Non-Muslim citizens of those countries can also participate in the games. The last edition of the games was held in Azerbaijan’s Baku in 2017.
In Konya, athletes will compete in shooting events, athletics, three-on-three basketball, cycling, bocce, gymnastics, fencing, soccer, wrestling, weightlifting, handball, judo, karate, kickboxing, table tennis, archery, taekwondo, volleyball, swimming, traditional archery, para-athletics, para-table tennis, para-archery and para-swimming.
Participants will compete in the games in 12 different venues across Konya, including stadiums and sports halls. /Argumentum.al
