The Mayor of Kazan, Ilsur Metshin, presented republican and municipal awards to leaders of the Kazan 2013 Executive Directorate for their contribution in the preparation and delivery of the 2013 World University Summer Games. The grand ceremony took place in the City Hall on Friday, December 20.
Ilsur Metshin reminded that the republican leadership, headed by the first President Mintimer Shaimiev and current Tatarstan President Rustam Minnikhanov, played active roles in the preparation and delivery of the Summer Universiade. Russian President Vladimir Putin made great efforts to turn the Kazan Universiade into a high-profile international event. "The list of those who contributed to the Games is endless ... The victory was 'forged' with the hands of thousands of people - construction companies, city improvement enterprises and transportation providers, cultural, healthcare and sports institutions, law enforcement and intelligence agencies, volunteers and regular citizens of Kazan. It is important that all of us were one team. By handing these commendations to you, I would like to thank everyone who contributed to the preparation," the Mayor said. He also added that federal awards are also expected to be presented any time soon.
"I want to thank you for your creative labour. There are new international events ahead of us and I am sure we will do even better," concluded the Mayor. After his speech, Ilsur Metshin awarded letters of gratitude to the chief executives of the Kazan 2013 Executive Directorate.
"We are very happy that the Universiade Directorate is a company of young creative people who made an enormous contribution to the history of the city, our country and wrote a new chapter in it by staging a world-class event. The work in such a unique project is the brightest stage in my life, in my professional career. It is not only new opportunities and experience, it is a true sign of faith that I made it into this team and was responsible for a certain field of work, which we carried out highly successfully," Deputy Director General and Chief of Staff of the Kazan 2013 Executive Directorate, Larisa Sulima, shared her impressions.
"Every day I watch these clips that show how it all happened and every time I relive old summer memories and remember the Closing Ceremony, athletes' happy faces as they won or sad faces as they lost. Young people from all over the world, the volunteers worked shoulder-to-shoulder with us and went through the same feelings, the same emotions that we experienced at that time."
The Mayor of Kazan handed letters of gratitude to chief executives of the Kazan 2013 Executive Directorate, MUE Kazgorsvet, MUE Trust Gorvodzelenkhoz, MUE Metroelektrotrans, city prosecutor's office, Kazan Higher Military Command School, OOO Bakhetle, etc.
Along with letters of commendation of Kazan and letters of gratitude from the Mayor of Kazan, Ilsur Metshin handed republican awards for active participation in the preparation and delivery of the 27th Summer Universiade. The medal for merits in the development of local government in the Republic of Tatarstan was bestowed upon First Deputy Mayor of Kazan, Oskar Prokopyev; the First Deputy Head of the Executive Committee of Kazan, Rustam Nigmatullin, received the medal for valorous labour and letter of gratitude of the President of Tatarstan was handed to Head of the Secretariat of the Municipal Entiry of Kazan, Albina Rafikova.