There are some good things that truly make Sakartvelo an organic part of the West, and this is more than delightful. The European Youth Olympic Festival (EYOF) is taking place in Georgia from January 9 to 19, 2025. Georgia was granted the official status of the host in 2020 at the 49th General Assembly of Europe’s Olympic Committees. The sporting events are being held in Bakuriani, Tbilisi, and Batumi, all of which are perfectly equipped and organized for the event. Never before has Georgia hosted the Youth Winter Olympic Games, but it is worth noting that in 2015, Georgia was chosen to host the Summer European Youth Olympic Festival, which was a tremendous success thanks to the efforts of the Georgian people, the government, and the European patrons of the festival.
The history of the European Youth Olympic Festival spans 33 years. The first festival was held in Brussels in 1991 as a summer event. Later, winter sports were introduced, with the first winter venue being the Italian town of Aosta in the Valle d’Aosta region in northwestern Italy. Bakuriani is the main venue for events, where competitions in five sports are held: alpine skiing, biathlon, cross-country skiing, freestyle skiing, and snowboarding. Bakuriani requires no introduction. This famously gorgeous place has always been a wonderful location for sports bases, training, competitions, conferences, and entertainment even before the Soviet era. Even more so now, as this year-round resort is rapidly developing and gaining global recognition. Indeed, this world-class mountain resort offers high-level, versatile services needed for sporting life to anyone who chooses to spend time there—be they Olympian-level athletes or just beginning skiers and skaters.
Bakuriani boasts wonderful ski tracks, 23 in total. The well-maintained trails and other infrastructural details are readily available. As part of the EYOF-2025, Tbilisi is hosting ice hockey in a newly built ice arena, featuring both boys’ and girls’ tournaments. Batumi, Georgia’s second-largest city, a sea port and resort, is the venue for figure skating and speed skating, taking place in the newly constructed Olympic-size skating rink. Together, Bakuriani, Tbilisi, and Batumi are hosting more than 900 athletes from 46 countries competing in 8 sports!
EYOF promotes sports and various physical activities worldwide. Based on pure Olympic principles, it fosters friendship between the peoples of our planet, promotes fair play and tolerance among human beings, and unites the youth of 50 European countries, helping with the Euro-integration process. Finally, it offers a huge opportunity for our young men and women to acquire valuable experience in organizing and running a significant event in their own country, gaining relevant knowledge and learning new skills while interacting with European youth. The festival is a great platform for demonstrating new talents and capabilities.
The visual identity of the event and the official mascot of EYOF-2025, a Caucasian lynx named Gunda, was unveiled on February 28, 2024. The name “Gunda” is based on the Georgian word for snowball, symbolizing vigorous self-expression, nonstop progress, and the birth of new opportunities. After Georgia started its bid to host the 2025 Winter European Youth Olympic Festival, the Georgian National Olympic Committee recalled the logo created by the famous Georgian journalist and Olympic historian, Professor Paata Natsvlishvili, for Borjomi-2014, the applicant city, and proposed the Bakuriani-2025 logo to the European Olympic Committees.
Natsvlishvili explains: “The logo, with its distinctive element, represents the schematic silhouette of a fir tree, symbolizing the natural dominance of the Borjomi-Bakuriani landscape—fir and pine forests. At the same time, the fir pyramid is also perceived as a graphic representation of the pursuit of sporting victories. The presented form can also be understood as a social pyramid of sports in general—from mass and youth sports to Olympic sports. The colorful tree in the logo resembles a Christmas tree, reflecting the festive atmosphere of the Games. In addition, within the distinctive elements of the logo or their combination, one can read the zigzag of ski, luge, or bobsled tracks, and a ski jump, figure skating jump, or a puck. Therefore, the logo captures the essence of almost all winter Olympic sports.”
Georgia is currently hosting an event of global caliber, doing so with great dignity, genuine enthusiasm, and high professionalism. Congratulations, Sakartvelo! The only downside seems to be the lack of attention from some of our media, which appear indifferent to this wonderful event, as if nothing is happening. But it’s alright—there are others doing the job, and that’s good too!
Blog by Nugzar B. Ruhadze
