Michel PLATINI: “This country will host a great Euro championship”

UEFA president Michel Platini said on September 27 that Ukraine was ready to host Euro-2012. The chief European football inspector made his conclusion after his two-day inspection of the four Ukrainian cities that will host the event. According to him, the Euro-2012 facilities were all in good condition, so he was sure “this country will host a great Euro championship.” He added: “I have seen obvious progress in construction of the infrastructure, transportation network, and stadiums. We have solved all the major problems already and believe that the entire infrastructure will function well, it is just not commissioned yet.” Platini has made a compliment with this speech to everyone involved in the preparation of the tournament. Following the Frenchman’s address, Vice Prime Minister and Infrastructure Minister of Ukraine Borys Kolesnikov took the floor, as he attended Platini’s press conference, too. He pleased football fans with the announcement that all regions of Ukraine would get tickets for the opening ceremony of the Olimpiisky National Sports Complex, to be held on October 8. He said that about 15,000 tickets would be distributed to Kyivan university students and schoolchildren through the city administration as well as allocated through a lottery at Kyiv’s public universities and secondary schools. However, university students and schoolchildren will not be the only people to get to see the official opening of the Euro-2012 main stadium. According to Kolesnikov, 5,000 tickets for the most prestigious seats on the second tier of the Olimpiisky’s west stands will be selling at the box office on October 2 through October 7. At the same time, the ceremony will be attended by significantly smaller than planned audience. According to the vice prime minister, the number of spectators at the opening ceremony will be reduced by 20,000 because of the singer Shakira’s request for a scene for her performance to be installed on the stadium’s east stands.