RA Deputy Minister of Education, Science, Culture and Sports Karen Giloyan received today the representatives of the non-governmental organizations involved in the development of adaptive sports included in the state support program, the sports officials of the RA Regional Councils and Yerevan Municipality.

Welcoming the participants, the ESCS Deputy Minister noted that the aim of the meeting is to discuss issues related to adaptive sports and mass sports events. Karen Giloyan noted that the Ministry is currently working on a project that will enable young people, who are disabled as a result of the war, to get engaged in various sports activities, and in the future, to participate in tournaments. “The project will consist of two phases. The first phase envisages the inclusion of young people with disabilities in adaptive sports through psychological support, and the second phase targets supporting them on their way to becoming professional athletes. Wheelchair basketball, handball, table tennis, athletic relay race, chess, and checkers will be included in this project. We are considering of equipping a sports complex for adaptive sports. Such a program is necessary especially after the war.”

The Deputy Minister also touched upon the issue of recruiting the Paralympic team and advancing the results. “The statistics regarding the Paralympic Games are not satisfactory. We must make every effort to expand the number of participants and win medals. It is obvious that the funding of adaptive sports is not yet at the required level to expect higher results, but I am deeply convinced that we should not rely only on state support: each of us should try to solve the current issues to the best of our capacities. We should develop a competitive adaptive sports team instead of a team of two athletes. If we do not strive for victory, sport turns into a purely physical culture, thus the participation in international competitions is ineligible and unacceptable.”

Then the Deputy Minister spoke of holding mass sports events in smaller volumes this year in the regions of the Republic and Yerevan. “Due to the economic hardships caused by the coronavirus pandemic and the war, this year fewer mass sports events will be held as compared to the previous years. However, the existing ones must be organized properly. We are going to continue discussing alternative options for holding the cancelled events.”

The Deputy Minister also informed that a sports TV channel will be created in the near future, which will enable the sports organizations to broadcast their championships and promote sports activities.

At the end of the meeting, the ESCS Deputy Minister Karen Giloyan answered the questions of those present, considered their suggestions and the issues raised, emphasizing that the solutions are only possible through joint and committed work.