[2][3][4] Baku was awarded the right to host the first European Games at the 41st EOC General Assembly in Rome, on 8 December 2012.

[6] The Organising Committee responsible for the inaugural European Games in Baku was established by decree of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan.

[9] Bilgəh beach — road cycling time trials The local organising committee launched an online sales page[usurped] on its website to allow fans purchasing tickets for the inaugural event.

Twelve of the sports (archery, athletics, boxing, cycling, judo, shooting, swimming, table tennis, taekwondo, triathlon, volleyball, wrestling) would offer qualification opportunities for the Rio 2016 Summer Olympics.

The aquatic sports are only open to junior-level competitors, and the athletics competition forms the third division of the European Team Championships.

Human Rights Watch, in the same article, stated it had observed "the worst crackdown the country has seen in the post-Soviet era".

[48] Most European heads of state and government refused to participate at the opening ceremony,[49] sending mid- or low-level representatives instead.

[citation needed] Among those who did participate were Vladimir Putin of Russia, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan of Turkey, Aleksander Lukashenko of Belarus, Boyko Borisov of Bulgaria and Victor Ponta of Romania.

[47] During the games there was a road accident where a coach driver drove into a group of young Austrian athletes by mixing up the accelerator and brake pedals, with the incident recorded by a surveillance camera.

In the synchronized swimming duet competition, sisters Anna-Maria and Eirini-Maria Alexandri won the silver medal, which they dedicated to the injured teammates.

[59] The brand incorporates traditional Azerbaijani imagery with images and colours designed to evoke a European sporting feel.

[64] On Sunday 26 April the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, captured the official flame of the Baku 2015 European Games.