The 1st Children of Asia Games
The first ever international sports games were remembered by all the bright moments of sports and the grand opening of the Games.
The Games were organized by the initiative of the first President of the Sakha Republic (Yakutia) Mikhail Nikolayev dedicating to the 100th anniversary of the modern Olympic Games.
The audience and participants were welcomed by the President of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) Mikhail Nikolayev and the vice-president of the Russian Olympic Committee, Victor Rodichenko, who read the congratulatory telegram of IOC President Juan Antonio Samaranch and presented the head of the republic with a memorable gold medal in honor of the centenary of the Olympic movement.
The goal of the sports games is to strengthen peace and friendship among the children of the Asia-Pacific region, establish new sports links, and promote the ideas of Olympism.
The fire of the Games was specially brought from the Olympic Atlanta and lit at the stadium "Tuymaada". The honorable right to light a fire was given to the absolute champion of Russia in freestyle wrestling Nikolai Chukrov.
More than 250 young athletes from 10 teams took part in the first Games: China, the Republic of Korea, the Kingdom of Thailand, Mongolia, Kazakhstan, Kirghizia, Buryatia, Tyva, Aginsky Autonomous Okrug and Yakutia. They played 225 medals. Young athletes competed in eight kinds of sports: track and field, wrestling, boxing, checkers, chess, judo, archery, table tennis.
