ISTANBUL, Feb. 21 (Xinhua) -- Turkish athletes and sportspeople have been bidding farewell to the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics with fond memories.
Turkish Alpine skier Ozlem Carikcioglu specifically emphasized the Olympic spirit she experienced during the Games and the feeling of unity and togetherness, saying that they were beyond her expectations.
"Despite the COVID-19 related restrictions in the Olympic villages, we were able to come together with the athletes of other countries in various activities," Carikcioglu told Xinhua at a recent interview.
She said it was a great pleasure for her to be with many athletes, all from different countries and regions, get to know them, and listen to their stories.
The 28-year-old athlete also collected and swapped "countless" Olympic pins, which has become a tradition of the Olympic Games.
She also would remember the opening ceremony of the Olympics throughout her life as the Turkish Olympic team appeared the second after Greece at the parade in line with the stroke order of their team name as written in the Chinese characters.
"Above all, I can't forget the moments and feelings I experienced during my races. They always possess great memories for all of us as the athletes," she pointed out.
According to the Turkish National Olympic Committee Sports Director Erdem Dogan, the most important factor of the Beijing Winter Olympics will be the legacy it will leave to China.
He told Xinhua that after China hosted the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics, it made great strides in summer sports and ensured solid developments.
"Now they do the same for the winter sports," he said.
For Dogan, the facilities built for the Winter Olympics are not only for high-level athletes but also for the training of new athletes in the future.
"They have built accommodation complexes in the immediate vicinity of all these important sports facilities, very exceptionally, in a big way," he remarked.
Dogan believes that in four to eight years China will achieve great successes in all winter sports events.
Atakan Alaftargil, president of the Turkish Ski Foundation, for his part, said all the athletes taking part in this Olympics put all the world politics and negative issues aside and purely competed with each other in the sporting sense.
"We watched beautiful scenery in the Beijing Winter Olympics," he told Xinhua. "We hope that the messages given in Beijing will prevail, and we will see better scenes in the next Winter Olympics. As a sportsperson, that is my wish."
Turkey joined in the Beijing Games with seven athletes competing in short-track speed skating, alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, and ski jumping events.
Produced by Xinhua Global Service
