Georgia: The Olympic Museum in Seok hosted an event on Tuesday to commemorate the anniversary dates of the Mexico 1968 and Seoul 1988 Olympic Games, which marked 55 and 35 years, respectively.
The event was organized by the National Olympic Committee of Georgia and attended by the medalists of the Seoul Olympic Games, such as Nino Salukvadze, David Gobejishvili, Gela Ketashvili, Leri Khabelov, Amiran Totikashvili, Giorgi Tenadze, and Maia Azarashvili, as well as representatives of the sports federations, media, and other guests.
SEOK President Leri Khabelov addressed the public with a welcome speech. The event was led by SEOK Vice President Nino Salukvadze, winner of all three events.
The guests saw different shots on the big screen about the participation of Georgian Olympians at the Mexico and Seoul Olympic Games. Our Olympians recalled various interesting stories from their sports careers.
Fourteen athletes from Georgia participated in the 1968 Mexican Olympic Games and won 2 gold, two silver and two bronze medals –
- Roman Rurua (Greco-Roman wrestling) – gold medal
- Viktor Saneev (weightlifting) – gold medal
- Dito Shanidze (weightlifting)- silver medal
- Shota Lomidze (freestyle wrestling) – silver medal
- Zurab Sakandelidze (basketball) – Bronze medal
- Sergey Kovalenko (basketball) – Bronze medal
Sixteen athletes from Georgia competed in the Seoul 1988 games, winning five gold, two silver and five bronze medals –
- Nino Salukvadze (Throw throw) – gold and silver medals
- David Gobejishvili (free wrestling) – gold medal
- Vladimir Aptsiauri (fencing) – gold medal
- Vladimir Gogoladze (gymnastics) – gold medal
- Gela Ketashvili (Football) – Gold Medal
- Leri Khabelov (Free Wrestling) – Silver Medal
- Amiran Totikashvili (Judo) – Bronze Medal
- Giorgi Tenadze (Judo)- Bronze Medal
- Vakhtang Iagorashvili (Modern Pentathlon) – Bronze medal
- Mikheil Giorgadze (Water polo) – Bronze Medal
- Maia Azarashvili (Endurance) – Bronze Medal
The participants shared their memories and experiences of the Olympic Games, which were the first and last for Georgia as part of the Soviet Union. They also expressed their pride and gratitude for representing their country and bringing home 19 medals from Seoul, including seven gold, five silver, and seven bronze.
The event also featured an exhibition of photos, videos, and memorabilia from the Mexico and Seoul Games, showcasing the achievements and challenges of the Georgian athletes in those historic competitions.
