The European Games, the first major multi-sports event of the continent, is "set to kick off in Azerbaijan's Baku on Friday," according to Karolos Grohmann of REUTERS. The Azeri capital "has pulled out all the stops as it looks to establish itself as a viable option for international sports events." Azerbaijan, however, "is under criticism over its human rights record and some rights organizations have said their officials have been barred from entering the country during the Games." Sparing no cost, the Azeris "have raced to complete preparations in less than three years with several spectacular venues sprinkled over the capital, including the national gymnastics arena and the brand-new 68,000-seater Olympic stadium." But "not everything is sparkling under the hot summer sun," with energy-rich Azerbaijan "under constant criticism over its human rights record." On Tuesday, the Organisation for Security & Cooperation in Europe "was given one month to halt its operations in the former Soviet republic." Amnesty Int'l officials "were then barred from entering Baku later on Tuesday" (REUTERS, 6/10).
CHANGE OF MIND: The AP's Mike Corder wrote on the eve of the inaugural European Games, the Netherlands on Wednesday "pulled out of hosting the second edition of the multi-sport event in 2019." The Dutch government said in a statement that "there was insufficient support for funding the event," calling the €57.5M ($65M) price tag too high for local, provincial and national authorities. The Dutch "also questioned whether there would be enough top athletes at the games because sports including swimming and athletics already have European Championships that year" (AP, 6/11).
