Free hugs celebrate international date in Tbilisi

Georgia's celebration of the International Hug Day will be led by the mascot of the Tbilisi 2016 European Athletics Youth Championships in streets of capital Tbilisi tomorrow.

The international sporting event's mascot - a squirrel named Coco - will find and hug passersby from the morning while handing out presents.

Starting outside the Tbilisi State University on Chavchavadze Ave, the mascot and other participants of the celebration will later move to the Georgian Technical University on Kostava St.

Peaky the mascot offers hugs in Tbilisi streets for the 2015 International Hug Day. Photo by Tbilisi 2015 European Youth Olympic Festival.

The occasion will be held by the Organisational Committee of the Tbilisi 2016 contest that staged similar celebrations of the international date in the recent years.

Last year another European Youth Olympic Festival mascot Peaky offered hugs to people on Tbilisi streets.

The National Hug Day was established in 1986 in the United States by Kevin Zaborney. Later adopted and celebrated worldwide, the date became known as the International Hug Day.