The President of Georgia Mikheil Saakashvili attended the performance of figure skating presented by children in Batumi on the specially arranged skating ring for the New Year at European Square and later skated together with them. The President congratulated children with the New Year and promised them to build a skating ring of Olympic standards in Batumi. As Mikheil Saakashvili said the skating ring soon would be arranged in Kutaisi as well, one skating ring is already functioning in Zugdidi. As he noted this kind of sport is already very popular in Georgia.

"We are arranging a skating ring here, we are planning to construct a real ice hall later this year as well. You will not be able to recognize this place very soon. This city changes monthly. And in six months this place will become a world level miracle. I met my polish friends recently, who told me that tens of thousand Polish people will come here in summer and next year this number might increase and reach hundreds of thousand if we work hard. I have visited every new construction site together with Levan and besides the fact that about 40-50 new buildings are constructed here the rehabilitation process of old Batumi has started as well. Those, who haven't visited Batumi since last summer will not recognize it any more; every Georgian must be proud of it. People are working hard at the constructions even today. It is January 2 today, it is a day of fate and people are celebrating it, but people work at construction sites even today - it means that we are fasted to work this year. Not only the seashore, but the whole city will be well arranged. We must start the rehabilitation in the middle of town as well, not any single district should remain undeveloped and we must have beautiful buildings everywhere. Everything must be very beautiful - this is a matter of our dignity. Batumi must become landmark of our country", the President stated.