All accommodation capacities in Sarajevo are fully booked for the European Youth Olympic Festival (EYOF) starting this Saturday, when the city will welcome the guests from nearly 50 countries of the world

EYOF is the biggest Olympic youth festival for young athletes aged between 14 to 18, and apart from competitors, coaches and team members, the city will also host other guests including technical teams and representatives of the international sports organisations.

Sarajevo is co-hosting the event together with its neighbouring city of Istocno Sarajevo (East Sarajevo).

Hotels, hostels and private accommodation capacities are fully booked, according to the Sarajevo Canton Tourist Board.

“EYOF is a great opportunity to revive the Olympic spirit of Sarajevo. The Tourist Board supports this festival, with an aim to attract tourists and improve the image of the Sarajevo Canton, especially in the winter period, because we're used to seeing the guests in summer,” said Midhat Hubijar, the Tourist Board President.

The mountains surrounding the city, which once hosted the Winter Olympic Games and where some of the EYOF competitions will take place, still have some lodging to offer but the hotel owners believe they will be full by the weekend as the booking requests keep coming.

Precise data on the number of guests will be available at the end of the month, said Hubijar.

According to him, the importance of the festival is multiple. It is expected to leave big results in terms of the increased number of visitors.

EYOF will officially open on Sunday at the Olympic stadium Kosevo. The flame of peace will be lit by Bosnia's judo fighter Larisa Ceric.