On May 29 the opening ceremony of the 26th edition of the World Taekwondo Championships was held in Baku.
President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev and First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva attended
the ceremony.

There was a parade of participating teams and Flag of the World Taekwondo Federation was brought onto the scene.
Then, the State Flag of the Republic of Azerbaijan was brought onto the scene and the state anthem the Republic of Azerbaijan was played.

The opening ceremony was addressed by President of the World Taekwondo Federation Chungwon Choue, President of the International Olympic Committee Thomas Bach, President of the Azerbaijan Taekwondo Federation Kamaladdin Heydarov.

Minister of Youth and Sport Farid Gayibov declared open the 26th World Taekwondo Championship.

Photographer: Nadezhda Javad