Kazan presents the Games of Future at the World Summit of Local and Regional Leaders in South Korea

Kazan has presented the Games of Future at the World Summit of Local and Regional Leaders, which takes place in Daejeon (South Korea) and brought together delegates from 140 countries. For the first time, the presentation of a large-scale event to be hosted by the capital of the republic of Tatarstan in 2024 took place at such a high level.

The Games of Future will run for 9 days and will unite 2 thousand participants

Ilsur Metshin, Mayor of Kazan, President of the UN Advisory Committee of Local Authorities (UNACLA), expressed confidence at the presentation that progressive, prejudice-free and gifted youth of the world will gather in Kazan for the Games of Future. It is this generation that will have to build a better future, I.Metshin said. “We are working hard to stay together, to stay united in these difficult times. I am sure that this difficult period will end soon. We must dream and think about tomorrow”, - the Mayor said.

The competitions will be held for 9 days and will bring together 2,000 participants who will compete in more than 16 disciplines, said Igor Stolyarov, president of the Games of Future. Each of the disciplines comprises the concept of phigital (physical + digital), combining classical sports and cyber sports or VR/ AR technology. According to him, the concept of the event, characterized by the synergy of physical and digital activity, meets the challenges and realities of the modern world.

The project president invited teams from all over the world to participate at the Phigital Games, which will be test events prior the Games of Future and will be held in November and December this year, as well as in 2023. For reference, the first Phigital Games were held in Kazan in September 2022.

Deputy Head of the Kazan Municipality Evgenia Lodvigova added that Kazan has accumulated impressive experience in holding major international events. Representatives of more than 115 nationalities live side by side in peace and harmony in the city with a rich infrastructure and traditions of hospitality, she assured the summit participants.

The Mayor of Kazan: “The task of local authorities is to make cities healthy, safe and sustainable”

The importance of cooperation between local authorities of different countries was noted at the congress by the President of the Republic of Korea Yoon Suk-yeol. Another guest of honor at the event was Ban Ki-moon, a former UN Secretary-General. According to him, cooperation at the municipal level is the key to developing a plan for a transformative future.

A meeting of the Assembly of the Eurasian Regional Branch, whose headquarters is located in Kazan, was held as part of the summit. The discussion was devoted to the environmental problems of the regions. The members of the Assembly shared their experience in solving urgent problems for municipalities, the recommendations will be included in the final Daejeon Declaration of the World Organization “United Cities and Local Governments”.

The Mayor of Kazan noted that the main task of local authorities is to make cities healthy, safe and sustainable, emphasizing the importance of building a constructive dialogue with the population, interaction with residents on the rights of partnership. In his opinion, digital tools can play a key role. “The result of digitalization is inclusivity, social activity of city residents and improvement of their living standards”, - I.Metshin said.

Ilsur Metshin headed a meeting of the Council of the Eurasian Regional Office with the participation of representatives of Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Mongolia and mayors of Russian cities.

The World Congress of United Cities and Local Governments began on October 10 and will end on October 14.