Latvian National Basketball Team Receives 388,000 Euros to Prepare for Olympics

The funding allocated is 11,300 euros less than originally requested.

LETA previously reported that the Ministry of Education and Culture had initially requested funding for the Latvian Ice Hockey Federation to cover the planned expenses this year related to the preparation of the Latvian men’s national ice hockey team and participation in the 2026 Winter Olympics qualifying tournament. In total, the two teams were planned to receive 815,751 euros.

The Ministry of Finance did not support the request of the Ministry of Education and Science, citing the meeting on cooperation of coalition parties held on February 19, at which it was decided not to request funding for sporting events this year from reserve funds.

The Ministry of Finance also recalled that this year the government has already allocated 2,319,330 euros in reserve funds for both sporting events.

It has already been announced that the qualifying group tournament for the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris will be held from July 2 to 7. At the qualifying tournament in Riga, the Latvian men’s basketball team will face Georgia and the Philippines in Group A, while Brazil, Montenegro and Cameroon will play in Group B. Only the winner of the tournament will receive a ticket to the Olympic Games.

The men’s hockey tournament with the participation of the Latvian national team will be held from August 29 to September 1 at Arena Riga.