Looking back at 2023, I can say that it was a hugely successful year in so many respects.
Focusing on our own competitions, European Athletics delivered a series of events of which included the following:
- Istanbul 2023 European Athletics Indoor Championships
- Leiria 2023 European Throwing Cup
- Podebrady 2023 European Race Walking Team Championships
- Pace 2023 European 10,000m Cup
- Silesia 2023 European Athletics Team Championships
- Espoo 2023 European Athletics U23 Championships
- Jerusalem 2023 European Athletics U20 Championships
- Brussels 2023 SPAR European Cross Country Championships
It is only a few weeks since the last of those took place and I would like to commend and thank the Local Organising Committees of this and all the other events I’ve detailed for their superb organisation and commitment to providing platforms on which European athletes can excel and strive to reach their personal goals which, in turn, continues to keep our sport at the centre of attention for all sports fans.
Istanbul, of course, took place in the shadow of the devastating earthquake in Türkiye which inevitably cast a shadow over the championships but the organisers, athletes and public responded magnificently to this tragedy in so many ways.
At our other championships, we had a plethora or outstanding performances and a myriad of records but one in particular stood out for me: Maria Perez’s 35km race walk world record at the European Race Walking Team Championships.
I would also mention the fact that having the all three divisions of the European Team Championships innovatively contested over six consecutive days in at the same venue in Silesia as part of the European Games, helped consolidate our sport’s place within the European Olympic family and give us an enhanced prominence, not just across the continent but around the world.
Less publicly visible to athletics aficionados but still crucial to the well-being of our sport in Europe, we also had a very productive Congress and Convention in 2023.
On a personal note, I would like to say how humbled I am that the European Athletics Member Federations put their confidence in me and re-elected me as President back in April and I will do my best to serve and support every single Member Federation, big or small.
Finally, although there is much more I could say but space necessitates that I am brief, I would like to congratulate our European Athletes of the Year Jakob Ingebrigtsen and Femke Bol – both of who set European records and won world titles during the last 12 months – who were both crowned as European Athletes of the Year for a second successive year at our Golden Tracks award night in October.
Now, I want to look forward to 2024 and talk about what the next 12 months have in store.
Of course, the most important competition in the European Athletics calendar takes place over six days in the summer when Rome hosts the European Athletics Championships from 7-12 June.
Personally, I love being in the Italian capital and watching athletics there. The city is steeped in history and that extends to our sport as the Stadio Olimpico was the centrepiece of the 1960 Olympic Games and 1974 European Athletics Championships and will once again welcome us 50 years after the latter event.
Preparations are well advanced for what I think will be an outstanding championships when I am sure we will see a great spectacle provided by Europe’s top athletics stars as their journey on the road to Rome is completed and they embark on the path to Paris with the Olympic Games there barely two months later.
Twelve months ago, I wrote: “I believe in 2023 we will see many of our development initiatives having ever more tangible results,” and while I didn’t have a crystal ball, I believe this has substantially come true and will become even more evident in the year ahead.
European Athletics has increasingly focussed on the sustainability of events, and the goals we have set for Roma 2024 and all our other competitions raise the bar in this area.
In conjunction with this, we are ensuring that our events are becoming a Safe Space for everyone. Abuse and intimidation in whatever form and however it is directed has no place in athletics.
Consequently, I am very proud of the fact that, with European Athletics support, 45 Member Federations have developed Safeguarding Policies. We will be monitoring these policies’ implementation and delivery but I think European Athletics can be proud to be in the forefront of this important initiative.
During the Convention, and with the approval of the European Athletics Council, I presented my Strategic Roadmap for next four years where the focus will be on three pillars: Competition, Digitalisation and Innovation, and Community.
Today is the first day of that Roadmap, and in my 2025 New Year’s Message I hope there will be many things to say about what we have achieved during the coming year.
As always, I would like to say a big thank you to all the officials and volunteers in so many local and national organisations, most of whom give their time freely and without much individual recognition.
In addition, I would like to recognise our commercial partners who support European Athletics financially and allow us to do an immense amount of work in helping ensure athletics continues to be such a fantastic sport to be involved in.
Let me conclude by wishing all of you a healthy, enjoyable, and successful 2024. Happy New Year!
Dobromir Karamarinov
European Athletics President
