I am proud to present to you EYOF 2023, the EUROPEAN YOUTH OLYMPIC FESTIVAL.
Friuli Venezia Giulia has always been involved in great projects aimed at promoting our region, economic development and the well-being of its citizens. One of them is the winter edition of Eyof 2023, the European Youth Olympic Festival.
Officially assigned to our region in February 2020, just days before the outbreak of the coronavirus in Italy, the European Youth Olympic Festival represents an exceptional opportunity for Friuli Venezia Giulia to be perceived and appreciated by an increasingly large audience. Certainly, a prestigious showcase for our community, but also for the whole country which will host the Winter Olympics in Milan and Cortina in 2026.
International events of this scale, capable of involving such a large number of young people, have the responsibility to reaffirm the fundamental principles of sport as a social glue and an instrument of individual and collective growth. At the same time, they are an exceptional driver for the development of the entire regional territory and become an important tool of international cooperation through contact with foreign guest delegations and our neighbors Austria and Slovenia, which are also involved in the organization of the event.
As administration of this region, we invest heavily in elite sport in the belief that we have the skills and facilities to organize world-class competitions once again. Indeed, the mountain municipalities of Friuli Venezia Giulia, which will host the Eyof in January 2023, have been working from the outset to present themselves at their best at the start of the competitions.
Dedication, sacrifice, effort, defeat. Sport is important because it embodies universal values that allow us to face difficult situations with the right attitude. Sometimes even very difficult situations. It is fundamental to start anew, to have a vision for the future, a planning that must be part of our lives. Both in private and in public. I am convinced that our region will be able to win this challenge by conquering the athletes, the staff, the authorities and the guests of the event who will be able to appreciate the many qualities that our region has to offer.
Massimiliano Fedriga
Governor of Friuli Venezia Giulia