Poll shows public support for Baku 2015 European Games

Nearly two-thirds of Azerbaijan’s population say the inaugural European Games in Baku will be a worthy investment, according to a new survey.

Sixty-two percent believe the Games will have a strong legacy and promote Azerbaijan’s future development. The public opinion poll of 1,200 respondents was conducted from June 14-16.

The survey, conducted by Rey Monitoring Center, also found that 67% of the population will watch coverage of the Games on television, with over 50% of the population following news around the event in the lead-up to it.

Around 1.5 million people in Azerbaijan are interested in buying tickets for the Games next summer.

“These results show that the majority of Azerbaijan’s population recognise just how important next year’s European Games are," said Simon Clegg, chief operating officer at Baku 2015.

"Public support is crucial to the success of the event and it is vital for Azerbaijan that we deliver a European Games of which the whole country can be proud.”

Baku 2015 expects increasing levels of public support for the European Games as the event draws closer.

A total of 19 sports are on the program - 16 Olympic sports and three non-Olympic sports. More than 6,000 athletes will compete in the 17-day competition. Nine sports will serve as qualifiers for the Rio 2016 Olympics. They are archery, athletics, beach volleyball, cycling, shooting, swimming, table tennis, taekwondo and triathlon.