The first edition of the Games of the Small States of Europe dates back to 1985 and took place in San Marino. Since then, the event has returned every other year.
The games are open to countries that have an independent Olympic Committee and have less than 1 million inhabitants: Andorra, Luxembourg, Liechtenstein, Malta, Montenegro, Iceland, Monaco, San Marino and Cyprus.
Over the course of the last few years, there has been an ongoing debate about whether there is a future for the Games of the Small States of Europe, as some participants struggle to gather the funds to allow their athletes to compete.
Luxembourg’s Minister for Sports, Dan Kersch, considers that the Games of the Small States of Europe still have a right to exist and he considers them to be quite important. In fact, he considers them indispensable to the international sporting world.
Kersch is going to attend the Games live in Montenegro this year. He said that he is looking forward to seeing disciplines that he has been less familiar with until now and to get talking to Luxembourgish athletes and to get to know them a bit better.
Athlestes are also looking forward to the competition and, even though these don’t quite compare to the Olympics or World Championships, it is special to take part n the Games.
Track-and-field athlete Charline Mathias is excited that Luxembourg’s delegation is sizeable and is looking forward to meeting other athletes and to cheering each other on and supporting one another.
A further key aspect of the Games of the Small States of Europe is that young athletes have the opportunity to learn from their more experienced colleagues, explained Chef de Mission Alwin de Prins.
Games of the Small States of Europe are held in Monenegro for the very first time:
In 2019, Monenegro is hosting Games of the Small States of Europe for the first time. The small democratic republic on the Adriatic coast has become independent from Serbia in 2006. The country is about six times as large as Luxembourg and counts roughly 625,000 residents. Following its independence, Montenegro had to wait three years to be accepted into the circle of the Games of the Small States of Europe.
They were first represented at the Games in 2011 in Liechtenstein and are now the hosts for the 2019 edition.
