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Prime Minister Nicolae-Ionel Ciuca said on Monday at Victoria Palace that swimmer David Popovici is the standard-bearer of his generation, and his performance at the World Championships in Budapest will revive the Romanian sport.
"I was happy to shake his hand and personally congratulate David Popovici, the young sportsman who made us all proud. I advised him to remain the same man with his goals, with willingness for efforts because his path will be from now on longer and harder. The seriousness, the desire to perform, dedication, but also the passion for sports are a role model for the young generation, which needs such examples to have full confidence in the future. David Popovici is the standard bearer of this generation and I am convinced that the obtained performance will revive the Romanian sport," the prime minister was quoted as saying in a release sent to AGERPRES.
The prime minister also conveyed thanks and appreciation to the coaches and parents, who guided and supported the career of the young swimmer (17 years old), who won two gold medals (100 m freestyle and 200 m freestyle), last week, at the World Swimming Championships in Budapest.
Prime Minister Ciuca mentioned that the Government supports the reform of the Romanian sports system, through the National Strategy for Sports, which is drawn up by the Ministry of Sports and will be promoted soon, considering that it represents an objective of the Government Program.
The meeting was also attended by the Minister of Internal Affairs, Lucian Bode, the honorary counselor Gheorghe Popescu, the president of the Romanian Swimming and Modern Pentathlon Federation (FRNPM), Camelia Potec, the general secretary of FRNPM, Matei Giurcaneanu, the swimmer's father, Mihai Popovici Adrian, as well as coach Adrian Radulescu.
Popovici, a debutant at the Olympic World Senior Championships, won the first two world titles for Romanian men's swimming and set new world junior records in both events.
Popovici is the second swimmer of all time to win gold in the 100 and 200m freestyle events at the same World Championships, after the American Jim Montgomery, who did so in 1973 in Belgrade.
AGERPRES
