MINSK, 31 December (BelTA) - President of the National Olympic Committee of Belarus Viktor Lukashenko has wished a Happy New Year to Belarusian athletes, coaches and fans, BelTA learned from the NOC press service.
The message of greetings reads: "We are bidding farewell to 2021. The year was full of many different events. There were difficulties and mistakes, but we dealt with them together. Everything we have achieved is not just a gift from above. It is a reward for the hard work of everyone involved in the high performance sport in Belarus. Especially for those who were able to grace the podium at the Summer Olympics in Tokyo, who had the Belarusian flag raised and our anthem played in their honor. We worked both for ourselves and for the well-being of our families, our great Olympic family. All this contributed to our common success.
The new year of 2022 is approaching. Every time we are excited about this holiday as we were when we were children - we are looking for joy, fun, and gifts. Ahead is another responsible and action-packed year, the year of the 24th Winter Olympic Games in Beijing. I am sure that our joint work will be just as dynamic and effective and will contribute to further development of the Olympic movement in our country and new victories in the international sports arena.
I am convinced that every Belarusian will be rooting for our Olympians at the Winter Olympics in the People's Republic of China. I hope that sports enthusiasts, all Belarusian fans will support our athletes during the world's main sporting event, for which they have been preparing their whole lives. I hope Belarusian fans will enjoy the performance of our team and will be able to rejoice at its successes. The most persistent and resilient will cross the finish line. Belarusians are simply obliged to be among the winners. We can do it!
Athletes can set the trends for a healthy lifestyle, sport, patriotism and pride in their people and their homeland. In my opinion, that is their mission! May all our hopes come true in the New Year! May our team show the best results in all the Olympic arenas, and may luck be on the side of Belarusian athletes.”
