President Lennart Meri received the dekathlete Erki Nool and the judokas Indrek Pertelson and Alexei Budylin in Kadriorg today, and hosted a dinner in their honour.

President of the Republic congratulated the Olympics winners and thanked them for carrying on the traditions of Estonian sports. ''Soon, I will travel to Germany, and take with me an old memory from the 1936 Olympics in Berlin. These are the only Olympic games where I participated from the start till the closing ceremony,'' the President said. ''I remember how, during the wrestling finals, all Estonians in the hall shouted: ''Palusalu anna valu, riigivanem kingib talu'' (Palusalu, do it now, the Elder of State will give you a farm), the President recollected.

President of the Republic gave a gift to the photographers – a joint photo taken under a 450-years-old oak.





Press Service of the Office of the President
Kadriorg, October 19, 2000

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