From the Azerbaijan Sports Journalists’ Association
BAKU, June 5, 2008 – This year has been one of celebration for the famous journalist, president of the Azerbaijan Sport Journalists Association, our friend Eldar Ismayilov who has celebrated his 60th birthday and 42 years of journalist activity.
Numerous sincere congratulations were sent to his address from New York, London, Luzon, Warsaw, Athens, Moscow, Istanbul and tens of other cities.
Succeeding since the very first day of his activity, which is rather serious and complicated, our experienced colleague has become the author of multiple appealing writings and broadcasts in the Azerbaijani and the world media. His publicity, stories and poems as well as sketches, photos and illustrations covered the pages of the most distinguished publications of the times.
He started his work as a reporter for a local newspaper in Agdam City of Azerbaijan in 1966. Later, graduating successfully from the Journalist Faculty of the Baku State University, Eldar Ismayilov was assigned as a special correspondent of Azerbaijan State Broadcasting Company for Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Region and surrounding districts since 1997. He updated the people with hot news during the Karabag clash. He is a veteran.
After the independence some new social organisations were founded in Azerbaijan. The Azerbaijan Sport Journalists Associations (AIJA) was one of them. His colleagues considered him worthy to be chosen as the president of this organization in 1995. Since then Eldar Ismayilov’s way of life and activity became correlated with this Olympic structured journalist unity.
Being its first president, Eldar Ismayilov has made this organisation actively involved in the international arena and was appreciated and supported by the local sport society and the media representatives of the republic. He represents Azerbaijan at the annual world congress of the International Sport Press Association in various countries.
The “LAUREUS” World Sports Awards Organisation, which is situated in London, is called the “OSCAR” of the sport worldwide. Eldar Ismayilov is one of the members of the Selection Panel of “Laureus”. The first presentation ceremonies of the Laureus award, starting since 2000, were held in Моnte Carlo, later in Barcelona. The famous political figure Nelson Mandela, the Prince of Monaco Albert, the King of Spain II Juan Carlos, as well as Silvester Stallone, Jackie Chan and other Hollywood stars took part at those ceremonies.
At present, journalists from 120 countries have joined the election of the 2007 sport laureates. Eldar Ismayilov is among them. Here goes the extract from the letter of Edwin Moses, the fourth-time world champion and the president of Laureus World Sport Academy, mailed to Baku from London:
‘Dear Eldar,
We would like you, as one of the leading professional journalists in the world, to extend your membership at the Laureus Selection Panel for election of the 2008 laureates of the World Sports Award…
Rejoining the Selection Panel, which guarantees the presentation of the awards to the best laureates, you will be a member of a sport journalists’ board, which has been selected from 120 countries...’
The ninth presentation ceremony of the sport’s Oscar was held this February in Saint Petersburg, the territory of the Unity of the Independent States for the first time.
It is worthy to note that Eldar Ismayilov is the head of a well-set family. He has a daughter, two sons and six grandchildren.
Congratulations Eldar – all the best for sound health and future success!
