The Ministry of Sports was instructed to use the funds released due to the cancellation of international competitions in Russia for the development of domestic sports. This was announced by Deputy Prime Minister of Russia Dmitry Chernyshenko at a meeting of the collegium of the Ministry of Sports.
The meeting was attended by the Minister of Sports of Russia Oleg Matytsin, Assistant to the President of Russia Igor Levitin, Chairman of the State Duma Committee on Physical Culture and Sports Dmitry Svishchev, First Deputy Chairman of the Federation Council Committee on Social Policy Alexander Varfolomeev and others.
Dmitry Chernyshenko noted that the sports industry has faced new challenges, but the past Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games in Tokyo, as well as the Winter Games in Beijing, proved that restrictions and external pressure are not able to break Russian athletes. The Deputy Prime Minister also added that Russia confirmed to all foreign partners its continued readiness for further cooperation and holding international competitions on the territory of the country.
“The priority is to ensure the maximum participation of Russian sports in international events. We will pay special attention to interaction and holding joint events with the countries of the CIS, BRICS and SCO,” the Deputy Prime Minister said.
Dmitry Chernyshenko noted that the government does not stop the implementation of the adopted strategies, federal projects and programs. The development of mass sports remains an important area of work.
“In connection with the current situation, the Ministry of Sports was instructed to revise the competition schedule. The funds released due to the cancellation of international competitions in Russia will be used to develop domestic sports, in particular, to build sports facilities within walking distance for citizens. The President set the goal that by 2030, 70 percent of Russians exercise regularly and lead a healthy lifestyle. Last year, work was completed on 101 stadiums and sports and recreation center – regarding 28 billion rubles were allocated for this. 83 regions received almost 630 million rubles to support sports organizations that train the sports reserve. Sports equipment and inventory were purchased for schools of the Olympic reserve in 73 regions. 444 million rubles were allocated for this from the federal budget,” Dmitry Chernyshenko said.
This year, according to him, it is planned to open more than 100 multifunctional sports complexes, ice arenas and swimming pools in more than 50 regions. Also, as part of the new federal project “Business Sprint (I Choose Sports)”, 84 regions will receive 2.4 billion rubles to create 110 smart sports grounds.
“Our athletes performed well at the Beijing Olympics. It is necessary to analyze the results of the preparation and participation of the teams: out of 32 medals, 17 were won by athletes representing two sports federations. This is the signal to look at the entire winter sports program and mark the ones that need to be worked on. At international competitions last season, in terms of the number of medals, we were invariably among the top three – we need to see why the same result might not be consolidated in Beijing. In the current Olympic year, it is important to focus on preparations for the next Games,” said Igor Levitin.
The Minister of Sports of Russia Oleg Matytsin in his report spoke regarding the main priorities of work in connection with the decisions of international sports organizations.
“We are witnessing one of the most difficult periods in our interaction with the international sports community. We consider the decision of the International Olympic Committee to be politicized and inconsistent with Olympic principles. Our task is to calmly and competently assess the legal side of the decision of the international federations to remove athletes and withdraw all international events from the territory of Russia. We will defend the positions and protect the interests of Russian athletes and their right to participate in competitions, because from our point of view, the basic principle of Olympism has been violated – these are the equal rights of athletes, the prevention of discrimination on political and national grounds. Now we see the main task in ensuring the fastest possible return of our athletes from the territories of the countries where the competitions were held, as well as the safety of their health and life. Our interaction with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, other structures and federations is aimed at this. Despite the current difficulties, the Ministry of Sports will continue to work on the implementation of the main tasks, we will quickly respond to the cancellation of international competitions and limit the participation of our athletes in international tournaments,” said Oleg Matytsin.
