World Youth Festival opens in Sochi

On the afternoon of March 2, the World Youth Festival (WYF) officially opened at the Siriuseducational center in the southern resort city of Sochi, Russia.

According to a VNA reporter in Russia, this year's world's largest youth event attracted 20,000 participants, including 10,000 Russian youth and a similar number of youth from 188 countries and territories around the world.

For the first time, young people aged 14 to 17 participated in the forum with about 1,000 people, including 500 from Russia and 500 from other countries. The Vietnamese delegation participating in the event consisted of more than 100 members. This is a platform for youth leaders to openly exchange opinions, express their views and be heard, join hands to solve social and world problems as well as build a fair and prosperous world together. The theme of this year's Festival is "Building the Future Together" and the Festival mascot is the friendly cartoon character Cheburashka with big ears.

More than 100 members of the Vietnamese delegation participated in WYF. Photo: Duy Trinh/ VNA reporter in Russia

The opening act of WYF was an elaborate, grandiose, modern musical show, held at the Sochi Ice Palace, built for the 2014 Olympics. The show focused on the love story of two young Russians, Andrei and Adeline, interspersed with introductions to Russia’s scientific and technological achievements. The story also highlighted traditional Russian family values.

Speaking via video to officially open the Festival, Russian President Vladimir Putin emphasized the role of the younger generation, who hold the fate of the world in their hands. Mr. Putin affirmed that multinational solidarity is the greatest value and this determines most of the principles on which the state and society exist and develop today. Mr. Putin also mentioned traditional values that, according to him, are shared by the vast majority of people on Earth, so they must be maintained and protected. He called for joint cooperation for the benefit of future generations, fighting poverty and terrorism, diseases and drugs, and preserving the diversity of the planet.

The opening ceremony took place at the Sochi Ice Palace. Photo: Duy Trinh/VNA reporter in Russia

During the 7-day Festival, from March 1-7, young leaders in the fields of science, culture, education, sports, media, business, charity, volunteering, international cooperation and other fields will participate in designing a better future for the entire Earth. Accordingly, there will be 800 events held in 55 locations with the participation of 1,500 speakers, 500 professional athletes, winners of the Olympic Games and World Championships, 2,500 artists, designers and craftsmen and 3,000 performers.

According to Tin Tuc Newspaper

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