Local Turkiye

Turkey marks Youth and Sports Day, commemorates Atatürk

Turkey is marking the Commemoration of Atatürk, Youth and Sports Day on May 19 by remembering Mustafa Kemal Atatütk, the founder of modern Turkey, with a series of events with the participation of crowds after a two-year halt due to the pandemic.

Every year, the country celebrates the day when Atatürk arrived in the Black Sea province of Samsun from Istanbul on May 19, 1919, to conduct the first steps of the start of the War of Independence.

To mark the day, most citizens hung Turkish flags from their houses’ balconies, and many skyscrapers in Istanbul were decorated with giant Turkish flags, drawing the attention of many residents.

A series of concerts will be given in Istanbul’s Maltepe, Üsküdar, Ataşahir and Kartal districts, with many popular bands and singers taking the stage.

The capital Ankara will also host concerts in two main agoras of the city.

One of the spectacular events held across the country was a “Youth March”organized in the eastern province of Batman.

Some 2,000 youth marched with Turkish flags at the foothill of the Mount Mereto in the Saso district.

In another remarkable incident, some Turkish cyclists brought “soil from Atatürk’s house in Thessaloniki” to Samsun.

Following a four-day ride, the “soil” was brought to the Black Sea province of Karabük. The cyclists will enter Samsun early on May 19.

Atatürk was born in 1881 in Thessaloniki, Ottoman Empire’s land back then and today’s Greece. The house he was born in has been converted into a museum with the Turkish Consulate residing nearby.

Source
hurriyetdailynews

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