ARMENIAN SPORT IS IN CONSTANT DECLINE, SAID PRESIDENT OF THE WORLD COMMITTEE OF PANARMENIAN GAMES

PanARMENIAN.Net - 23.12.2000, MEDIAMAX, YEREVAN. Accusations addressed by the president of the National Olympic Committee (NOC) of Armenia Ishkhan Zakarian to the organizers of Sydney Olympiad, who supposedly deprived the Armenian sportsmen of their medals, are fraught with the most negative consequences for the relations with the International Olympic Committee, the president of the World Committee of Panarmenian Games Ashot Melik-Shahnazarian said in the interview to Mediamax.

"Hardly concealed hints on dope use and unfair methods by the Russian and Iranian weight lifters voiced by Zakarian can seriously damage Armenian's relations with the NOC's of Iran and Russia", Melik-Shahnazarian said.

The president of the World Committee of Panarmenian Games thinks that the Armenian team was unsuccessful at the Olympiad in Sydney due to the constant decline of the Armenian sport.

"The results of the Armenian sportsmen before the Olympiads in Atlanta and Sydney are the obvious evidence of it. In 1993-1995 the Armenian sportsmen won 5-6 various medals annually at world championships. They won only two medals in 1997, one in 1998 and no medal at all in 1999", Ashot Melik-Shahnazarian said. -0-