Deputy Economy Minister highlights Int’l Ski Federation’s praise of Georgia’s “example” in World Championships preparation

The Deputy Minister made the comment after her meeting the FIS President Johan Eliasch and Amélie Oudéa-Castéra, France's Minister of Sport. Photo: Ministry of Economy

Agenda.ge, 14 Feb 2023 - 19:02, Tbilisi,Georgia

Georgian Deputy Economy Minister Mariam Kvrivishvili on Tuesday said the International Ski Federation had praised the works done by the country’s authorities on preparing the winter resort of Bakuriani for hosting the Snowboard, Freestyle and Freeski World Championships, with the event set to launch this week.

Kvrivishvili said the FIS had said Georgia “showed the world an example of how to prepare the country and create high-level infrastructure for the World Championships”.

The Deputy Minister made the comment after her meeting the FIS President Johan Eliasch and Amélie Oudéa-Castéra, France's Minister of Sport, the Ministry of Economy said.

It is a special source of pride that Bakuriani will host the World Championships after [the French destination of] Courchevel, and I am sure that with joint efforts and the work done by the Georgian Government, Bakuriani will be a worthy host”, Kvrivishvili said. 

Giorgi Ramishvili, the Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Silknet, a Georgian telecommunication provider which sponsors the event in Bakuriani, said the country’s ski resorts would “become as successful as Courchevel is today”. 

We received the greatest support and best evaluations from all the federations. So we can say that during the preparation period for the Championships, our work done over these years has been appreciated and seen. We are in very good shape for the World Championships, and we can be proud of this", Ramishvili said.

Bakuriani will host the Championships between February 16 and March 5, with about 700 athletes from 42 countries competing in 30 categories for seven disciplines.

Georgia was granted the hosting rights of the tournament by the International Ski Federation congress in 2018, with the resort upgraded with three new cable cars, two artificial reservoirs for the snowmaking system and six new tracks to host the event, with ₾270 million ($101.70mln) spent on the project.