Turkish Olympiads close with perfect ceremony

A spectacular closing ceremony for Turkish Language Olympiads took place at İstanbul Atatürk Olimpiyat Stadium.
A spectacular closing ceremony for Turkish Language Olympiads took place at İstanbul Atatürk Olimpiyat Stadium.


Date posted: June 19, 2013

A spectacular closing ceremony at İstanbul Atatürk Olimpiyat Stadium in front of 200,000 spectators for the 11th Turkish Language Olympiads has left bittersweet memories, signaling the end of a two-week festival full of poetry, dance, Turkish culture and music.

Participants, who came from 130 countries, in this year’s competition wrapped up the two-week long finals that were held across Turkey in İstanbul, with Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan also in attendance, praising organizers and congratulating students.

In address to the audience, Erdoğan slammed violent protesters amid approval roar of thousands of spectators. He said the ‘real Turkey’ representing the most parts of Turkey gathered at the stadium.

Praising the organizers of the event and thousands of Turkish teachers who contributed to spread of use of Turkish as a global language abroad, Erdoğan said the struggle is for reaching world peace.

He also hailed Fethullah Gülen movement, a faith-based social movement that focuses on education, inter-cultural and inter-faith dialogue, for its contribution to world peace.

Source: Today’s Zaman, 16 June, 2013


Related News

Mother of 2 detained while visiting jailed husband during Eid holiday

42-year-old Ozen Alkan was detainedon Monday, June 26 while she was visiting her husband, already under arrest over his alleged links to the Gulen movement. It was the second day of Muslim festival of Eid-Al-Fitr on Monday.

Gülen-linked journalists organization voices concern over profiling claims

The Journalists and Writers Foundation (GYV), one of the most prominent institutions affiliated with Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen, released a statement expressing its concerns over the government’s claimed profiling of citizens, civic groups and public employees. “It is worrisome to witness developments that echo the said “National Security Board decision, such as the plan to ban prep schools, the profiling of public employees or the purging of bureaucrats who are affiliated with certain communities,” the statement published on the institution’s website said.

Police detain Bursa woman on coup charges a day after giving birth

Elif Aslaner, a religious education teacher who gave birth on Wednesday at a private hospital in Bursa, was detained due to her alleged links to Turkey’s Gülen group on Friday. Aslaner’s husband said his wife had preeclampsia and suffered from convulsions when she gave birth to her first baby and remained in a coma for two days.

Black Sunday: The day Turkey detained its prominent journalists

The government-orchestrated crackdown on independent critical media outlets in Turkey took a turn for the worse on Sunday with dawn raids on Turkey’s largest newspaper Zaman and popular national TV network Samanyolu TV that led to the detention of top managers at the media outlets.

Reports of en masse wiretappings denied by prosecutors

Pro-government newspaper reports claiming thousands of people were wiretapped by prosecutors as part of an investigation into an unfamiliar terrorist group have been denied by both prosecutors who handled the investigation.

Bank Asya faithful boost deposits after Turkey seizes lender

Bank Asya has become a battleground in the feud between Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and self-exiled, U.S.-based cleric Fethullah Gulen, a preacher whom Erdogan blames for instigating a coup attempt against him and whose followers founded the lender. Supporters of each have sought, by turn, to strengthen and weaken the bank.

Latest News

Fethullah Gulen – man of education, peace and dialogue – passes away

Fethullah Gülen’s Condolence Message for South African Human Rights Defender Archbishop Desmond Tutu

Hizmet Movement Declares Core Values with Unified Voice

Ankara systematically tortures supporters of Gülen movement, Kurds, Turkey Tribunal rapporteurs say

Erdogan possessed by Pharaoh, Herod, Hitler spirits?

Devious Use of International Organizations to Persecute Dissidents Abroad: The Erdogan Case

A “Controlled Coup”: Erdogan’s Contribution to the Autocrats’ Playbook

Why is Turkey’s Erdogan persecuting the Gulen movement?

Purge-victim man sent back to prison over Gulen links despite stage 4 cancer diagnosis

In Case You Missed It

California Muslim Leaders Raised Their Voices, Condemning Extremism

Flynn’s Turkish [and Erdogan] Connection

Iqbal university to be set up in Lahore

Turks in South Africa tell a different narrative about Erdogan

Remarks by Congressman Mike Honda (Representing California) at IFLC Washington DC

Education in Mother Tongue: Eventual Solution to the Problem

Kimse Yok Mu lends helping hand to 15,000 Syrians in Suruç

Copyright 2025 Hizmet News