Kokab Nadeem Warraich, the Chairman of the Pakistan Cycling Federation, who is on a visit to Azerbaijan, has toured the Republican Velodrome. In an interview with the Press Service of the Azerbaijan Cycling Federation, he has shared his impressions of the visit:
“Visiting the Azerbaijan Cycling Federation was truly a magnificent experience for me. I would particularly like to emphasize one point – yesterday, I had the opportunity to tour the city of Baku. I lived in Europe for 3 years, and my family lives in Australia. Therefore, I have traveled extensively to various countries around the world and am quite familiar with the Western lifestyle.
The infrastructure of Baku and the conditions created by the Azerbaijan Cycling Federation genuinely impressed me. Honestly, I did not imagine there would be such high-level infrastructure here. Both what I saw at the Federation and the city of Baku as a whole made a great impression on me.
To give an example – I once visited the city of Nice in the south of France. There is a famous historical hotel there called the “Negresco”, located on the “Promenade des Anglais” waterfront. Yesterday, while walking in Baku, I saw buildings reminding me of that architectural style, and I was fascinated. The French are very proud of those structures. Yesterday, I even told my wife, who lives in Australia: “Do you remember the Negresco? I saw very beautiful examples of architecture here that resemble it.”
I think an information battle plays a certain role here as well, because Western countries have held a dominant position in this field for many years, they do not adequately convey the development and achievements of many countries to the global community. However, we also have modern infrastructure, strong potential, and professional people.
Regarding the Azerbaijan Cycling Federation in particular, I want to say that the conditions I saw made me very happy. I believe that with such opportunities, the Azerbaijani cycling could have been represented in the world's most prestigious competitions years ago, including races like the “Tour de France”.
As someone who has seen the offices and infrastructure of many cycling federations in Europe, I can confidently say that the conditions created here are by no means inferior to many of them, and in some cases, they are even of a higher standard.
I sincerely congratulate the Azerbaijan Cycling Federation and wish them continued success. I express my deep gratitude to the leadership of the Federation, especially to the President, for the high level of hospitality and warm attitude shown to me.
After returning to my country, I will meet with the leadership of my Federation and will definitely tell them about how warmly the Azerbaijan Cycling Federation welcomed our delegation, as well as the care and attention shown to us.”