Ukraine has great potential forreturn of international sports to the country after the war – Ukrainian sports minister Bidny
Ukraine's Minister of Youth and Sports Matviy Bidny has said that he believes that if Ukraine does not seize the moment and does not become the center of world attention after the war, including in sports, it will be a huge mistake.
"It all depends on us, but I am convinced that Ukraine is interesting to everyone in the world today. As soon as the conditions are created, as soon as we can provide sports facilities and logistics, I am convinced that this will become a place where everyone will want to come. Because today so much attention in the world is concentrated around Ukraine's struggle for its future that if we do not seize it and do not become the center of world attention after the war, including in sports, it will be our very huge mistake," Bidny said in an exclusive interview with Interfax-Ukraine, answering the question of how quickly international sports will be able to return to Ukraine after the war.
As for which international championships Ukraine would like to host after the war, the minister noted that the Olympic Games are a very complicated story that is almost never self-sustaining.
"I think we need to start by restoring the infrastructure in our communities so that our children, our citizens can play sports, take care of themselves and lead a healthy lifestyle. This is goal No. 1. Let's be realistic - attracting international competitions is a separate area of work that requires systematicity. And here we need to start with cup competitions, perhaps with some junior international starts, to develop our sports infrastructure," he added.
According to him, currently several sports facilities, which, fortunately, were not very badly damaged, are ready to host international competitions today.
"Therefore, after peace comes, we will be able to bring them to the level with a little effort so that they can host these starts. We have experience. We hosted the European Football Championship and a whole bunch of international sports competitions in other sports. I hope that athletics will come to us. We will complete the reconstruction of our athletics stadium, which was interrupted due to the war. Therefore, I think that we have great potential," said Bidny.
Among other things, he said that the Ministry of Sports team is doing everything to develop not only high-level sports, but also pays a lot of attention to mass and children's sports.
"You can watch the all-Ukrainian school competitions - the "Side by Side" leagues. Now the selection for the student leagues begins. It is clear that today the infrastructure is a complex problem that we cannot build and restore. More than 800 facilities were destroyed or partially damaged by the Russians, and this number is constantly growing. But Ukrainians are a sports nation. We see how adaptive sports are developing today... It is very important to always remember that we are a great sports nation, we have great traditions, we have great strength, and we were known in the world before this war began, and we were known for our sports results. It is very important that success in sports remains part of the Ukrainian brand," the minister emphasized.