Belarusian medalists of the 2018 Summer Youth Olympics were celebrated in the Belarusian Olympic Hall of Fame on Thursday, November 15th. Memorable gifts and money certificates, provided by the National Olympic Committee of the Republic of Belarus and the Ministry of Sports and Tourism, were presented to the eight prizewinners and their coaches.
Not only the medalists, but also their coaches and mentors, who helped the prizewinners throughout their whole sports journeys, were rewarded. Andrei Astashevich, the First Vice-President of the National Olympic Committee of the Republic of Belarus welcomed the medalists with a warm message: «I hope the competitions in Buenos-Aires were the opening phase of your sports career, and we really wish to see you among the medalists of the Summer Olympics, as well as World and European Cups.»
Artsiom Kolasau, two-time gold medalist of the Games, thanked the NOC and the Ministry of Sports and Tourism for giving the opportunity to represent our country at such important and significant competitions. He also shared, that all Belarusian athletes felt an incredible support of the whole country while in Argentina. Artsiom said that the YOG was great experience, which would be helpful for future achievements.
Sergey Kovalchuk, the Minister of the Sports and Tourism, said: «These guys are our future and our hope. To keep their talents and help their easy transition from the junior to the adult sport level is now crucial. I think it can happen with our joint efforts. Their eyes sparkle, they love sports, they love their country, and it’s so pleasant to see. We just have to keep this sparkle shining».
Liudmila Koloskova, the choreographer for the acrobats Victoriya Akhotnikova and Ilya Fomenkov, told how important the recognition is for young athletes: «It’s crucial that the children are awarded. Any labour has to be paid and rewarded. When it comes to competitive types of sports, getting bonus pay makes children understand that it’s not just an extracurricular activity, but a long and challenging journey, during which they’ll have to experience the transition from junior to adult level in sports and compete through the rivalry with other counties.»
The medalists still have time to think over the way to use their reward. Yelizaveta Dorts, the shot putter and the silver medalist of the YOG-2018, already mapped out a plan: «I am not quite sure of how exactly I want to spend the money. I’ll put it aside for now, but I plan on spending some to buy special sports nutrition to get ready for the European Cup that’ll be held this summer.»
Photo: Dzianis Kastsiuchenka