Stanislav Pozdnyakov:
– The Olympic movement is in danger today. The Olympic Charter and its central tenet – sport beyond politics – have come under unprecedented attack. There are obvious discrepancies between the fundamental principles of the Charter and the decisions taken today in the international Olympic movement.
We are well aware that the Olympic community is under enormous pressure from key Western sponsors and media corporations. It is not surprising, therefore, that a certain political order is clearly fulfilled with regard to Russian sports.
In the meantime, everyone is well aware that no sports organization in Russia, no athlete has anything to do with the bacchanalia taking place in international sports.
In the conditions imposed on Russian sport, we have new opportunities. The motto of today’s Forum “We are together” is more relevant than ever. What is needed now is a consolidated effort by state agencies and public sports associations. The latter include the Olympic and Paralympic Committees of Russia, all-Russian and regional sports federations.
High-performance/elite sport cannot be separated from the tasks that face mass and amateur sports. In any case, the basis of the fundamentals are our athletes. They are the most vulnerable in this crisis. It is therefore important to create all the conditions for their full-fledged training and competitive process.
Every athlete is unique to us and is a role model for the next generations. If this is not understood in the West, we must demonstrate it in Russia. I am sure that the potential shown by our national teams in all the last major competitions, including the Summer and Winter Olympics, will be in demand for many years.
I want to say separately about import substitution. Colleagues today have already raised this topic with regard to equipment and technologies. But it is also very important to establish this process among the coaching staff. I do not beg in any way for the services of foreign specialists. Most of them worked in Russia effectively and conscientiously, but in conditions of total Russophobia they are forced to leave our country. Therefore, we need to concentrate on coaching educational projects, training of own highly qualified specialists. In order that tomorrow, when we will be asked to return to the international sports arena, we will be ready and fully competitive.
By the way, as for the international sports organizations, there are now often sad jokes – the world sports community climbed too quickly and high on the tree, and now does not know how to get off it safely. And when Russian sport is offered to return, it will be necessary to think about safety guarantees for our athletes, so that they compete in a comfortable, friendly atmosphere.
The pandemic has taught us many things. Together with the Ministry of Sport and the RSF, we have accepted this challenge. Thanks to the well-established mechanism of interaction, it was possible to build a sports calendar, provide the opportunity for a continuous training process. This experience will certainly come in handy now.
In conclusion, a few words about the integration of the Olympic movement. It is far from as united in its position as the Western media try to portray.
Despite everything, we still have many partners even in European countries that are ready to cooperate, implement joint programs and projects. Sports have an important humanitarian mission. The holding of such forums as today’s pursues the goal that Oleg Vasilyevich Matytsin spoke about. Only together can we successfully overcome all challenges. The motto “Faster. Higher. Stronger. Together” for the Russian sport movement acquires a special meaning today.
