More than 400 young athletes from 18 countries will compete at the Balkan Athletics U20 Championships, to be held on 11 July at the Nicolae Marasescu Stadium in Craiova.

According to Craiova City Hall, the Nicolae Marasescu Stadium will host the Balkan Athletics U20 Championships for the second consecutive year, one of the most important international competitions for athletes at the beginning of their high-performance careers.

'Organised by the Romanian Athletics Federation in partnership with Craiova City Hall, the event will bring together more than 400 athletes, coaches, officials and delegation members from 18 of the 22 member countries of Balkan Athletics, one of the strongest regional organisations in world athletics. Although it has retained its established name, Balkan Athletics today brings together almost half of Europe's national athletics federations and its reach extends well beyond the geographical boundaries of the Balkan Peninsula. The fact that this competition is once again being held in Romania is further proof of the confidence enjoyed by the Romanian Athletics Federation and the municipality of Craiova within the European athletics community, both in terms of organisational capacity and the excellent conditions provided for athletes and officials,' the local authority said.

Craiova Mayor Lia Olguta Vasilescu said the young athletes would benefit from excellent competition conditions.

'It is a real pleasure for us to welcome to Craiova, for the second consecutive year, hundreds of young athletes, coaches and officials taking part in this year's Balkan Athletics U20 Championships. Once again, they will find excellent competition conditions, the hospitality for which we are known and spectators who appreciate and respect sporting excellence. The investments we have made in sports infrastructure are once again proving their value and we are honoured to contribute to promoting sport and developing the next generation of champions,' Lia Olguta Vasilescu said.

Romanian Athletics Federation President Constantina Dita said Craiova had become an important landmark on the Romanian and international athletics map.

'The fact that Romania and Craiova are once again hosting the Balkan Athletics U20 Championships confirms the confidence we enjoy within Balkan athletics and our ability to organise major international competitions. We want these young athletes to find the best possible competition conditions and an atmosphere that inspires them to surpass their limits. Craiova has become an important landmark on the Romanian and international athletics map and I thank everyone involved in organising this competition,' Constantina Dita said.

Among those expected to attend in Craiova are European Athletics President Dobromir Karamarinov, Balkan Athletics President Slobodan Brankovic and Balkan Athletics Secretary General Predrag Momirovic, together with representatives of the national sports authorities, participating national federations and prominent figures from European athletics.

The official opening ceremony is scheduled for 18:00, with the first events starting at 18:30. Thanks to the Nicolae Marasescu Stadium's modern floodlighting system, competition will continue until almost midnight, concluding with the 4x100 metres relay events.

Admission for spectators is free. AGERPRES (RO - writing by: Maria Mitrica; EN - writing by: Adina Panaitescu)