The president of the Turkish Athletics Federation, Fatih Çintimar, recently expressed his organization's aspirations to participate in the upcoming 2024 Paris Olympic Games with a significantly larger cohort of athletes and a robust determination to clinch more medals.
Speaking to Anadolu Agency (AA) during the final of the Turkcell Cross Country Super League held in Eskişehir, Çintimar said, "We aim to participate in the 2024 Paris Olympic Games with more athletes than in the previous Olympics. For this, our whole team is working hard. I believe we will achieve this."
Çintimar acknowledged that 2023 commenced on a remarkably high note for Turkish athletics, as it witnessed unprecedented achievements.
Specifically, he pointed out the 2023 European Indoor Athletics Championships held in Istanbul, which witnessed several world, European, and Turkish records shattered, reaffirming the potential resurgence of Turkish athletics.
"It is worth recalling that the 2023 European Indoor Athletics Championships held in Istanbul last month bore witness to a number of worlds, European and Turkish records being broken," he said.
However, the federation's morale was severely affected by the catastrophic "disaster of the century" dubbed earthquakes that ravaged southeastern Türkiye.
Notwithstanding the adversity wrought by the earthquakes, Çintimar reiterated the unwavering commitment of the Athletics Federation's employees and teams toward aiding the affected regions in their recovery process.
Highlighting the federation's dedication to serving as a beacon of hope and support, he said, "In the aftermath of the earthquakes, we rallied together to lend a helping hand to our athletes, their families, and the citizens impacted by this tragedy. We stood in solidarity with the people of that region, sparing no effort to provide them with the help they desperately needed. It was a collective endeavor that we approached with the utmost seriousness."
Çintimar also highlighted the outstanding success of Türkiye's hosting of the European Indoor Athletics Championships, a major global sporting event that received accolades from the international community.
Despite the enormous natural disaster challenges, he praised the event as a testament to the country's resilience and capability.
"It was not the responsibility of every nation to put together such an amazing event in the wake of such a disaster. It was a remarkable feat that attests to our nation's great state and capabilities," he said.
Çintimar highlighted one of the shining moments of the championship, which saw Tuğba Danışmanz take home the gold medal in the women's triple jump, as an example of the remarkable accomplishments that can be achieved when people come together in pursuit of a common goal.
Looking ahead, Çintimar noted that Türkiye was set to host the 2024 World Athletics Race Walking Team Championships in Antalya, which would provide an excellent opportunity to showcase the country's athletic prowess on the global stage again.
With the strong support of the Turkish government and its leadership, Çintimar expressed his conviction that Turkish athletics was on a firm footing to achieve its goals of participating in the 2024 Olympic Games with a larger contingent of athletes and the ultimate goal of securing medals.