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Cyprus will be represented by two athletes, one man and one woman, at the 25th Winter Olympic Games in Milan-Cortina, marking the country’s first dual participation at a Winter Games in 12 years, the Cyprus Olympic Committee announced Monday.
Alpine skier Yiannos Kouyioumdjian and fellow skier Andrea Loizidou will compete at the Games, scheduled for Feb. 6–22 in Italy. Kouyioumdjian will race in the giant slalom on Feb. 14 and the slalom on Feb. 16 in Livigno and Bormio, while Loizidou will take part in the downhill event on Feb. 18 in Cortina d’Ampezzo.
The Cypriot delegation was presented during a ceremony at the Olympic Hall in Nicosia, attended by Italian Ambassador Antonella Cavallari and senior sports officials. The team is set to depart for Italy on Feb. 4, with travel routes split between Milan and Venice depending on competition venues.
Cyprus Olympic Committee President Georgios Chrysostomou described the qualification of two athletes as “a special honour and a great success” for both the Cyprus Ski Federation and the Olympic Committee.
“Cyprus is participating with two athletes for the first time in 12 years, which demonstrates the work being done by the Federation, its leadership, coaches and technical staff,” Chrysostomou said. He emphasized that both athletes qualified on merit, calling it “a huge success.”
Chrysostomou added that the athletes had been included in Olympic Committee development programs, supported by Olympic Solidarity and the International Olympic Committee, well before securing qualification.
“This confirms our strategy of equal opportunities for all athletes, in all sports, and the support we give to the federations,” he said.
He noted that the total cost of Cyprus’ participation in the Winter Games is about 30,000 euros, drawing attention the financial challenges faced by the Ski Federation.
Italian Ambassador Cavallari congratulated the athletes, praising their achievement given Cyprus’ climate.
“The mere fact that you have qualified for such an event is a great achievement,” she said. “You come from a country where training is not so easy. Cyprus is not known as a country with snow, so you are very admirable.”
Cyprus Ski Federation President Dinos Lefkaritis said the Games would be a valuable experience for both athletes and credited families for their role in the athletes’ development.
“Without the help of the parents, we as a federation would not be able to help our athletes get to where they are today,” Lefkaritis said, adding that cooperation with the Olympic Committee had been crucial.
Loizidou, competing in her first Winter Olympics, said she feels “great honour and excitement” to represent Cyprus, calling her qualification “the reward for many years of hard work, dedication and sacrifice.”
Kouyioumdjian, a member of the national team since 2008, will be making his second consecutive Olympic appearance after competing at Beijing 2022. He thanked the Ski Federation for what he described as “excellent work” in recent years.
The Cypriot mission will consist of six members, including the two athletes, two coaches, a mission leader and an accompanying official, according to mission leader Andreas Eleftheriou.
