Azerbaijani actor Fakhraddin Manafov, speaking with a correspondent of Vestnik Kavkaza, thanked the leadership of the republic and personally the first lady of Azerbaijan, President of Heydar Aliyev Foundation, President of Azerbaijan Gymnastics Federation, Mehriban Aliyeva, for the organization of the FIG World Cup Final in Rhythmic Gymnastics in Baku.
"I am for the first time at such a sporting festival. I am a great sports fan and have always wanted to see a rhythmic gymnastics tournament, the kind of sports I am madly in love with which since childhood. I have never had such a chance, but I am here. I want to express my huge gratitude to my government, my people and Mehriban Aliyeva for the organization of such a fantastic event in Baku," he stressed.
"Thank you very much that we can just come and watch the rhythmic gymnastics competition. I'm a man of the sixties and eighties, back then we can see such things only on TV, for us such competitions in our city were something inaccessible," the actor added, drawing attention to the importance of the fact that today Azerbaijan is represented by its own athletes at such tournaments.
"I have friends who have granddaughters engaged in rhythmic gymnastics. Honestly, the first reason why I went to the World Cup to see these young children – and was shocked As a man of the theater and movies I watched a lot of shows, and I can say that their performances shocked me like theatrical performances, no matter it was Chekhov or Dostoevsky. Seriously, there is so much drama! When, for example, Alissa Sadek accidentally dropped the hoop, my heart jumped, it was the same thing that may happen in a theater, when an actor forgets text. And then our Jala – I shed a tear when she dropped her hoop, after all, she is the mistress of this podium. This shock is something fantastic," he said.
Fakhraddin Manafov also noted that the level of the Azerbaijani national team is growing. "Of course, we shall not deny a strong Russian school: when Russia's athletes are on the arena, the whole atmosphere immediately changes. But our Marina Durunda is a strong athlete, our girls are gradually growing and I believe that they will occupy a worthy place among the best in the sear future," the actor said.
Recall that today the FIG World Cup Final in Rhythmic Gymnastics started in Baku. It is attended by 26 athletes and nine teams from 17 countries.
