Moscow hosts International Forum for Young Olympians

On the opening day, around 300 young athletes gathered at the renowned VDNKh exhibition complex. A total of 12 young Belarusian athletes joined their peers on a visit to the Cosmonautics and Aviation Center, one of the largest museum exhibitions at VDNKh. The forum was officially opened by Russian Sports Minister, President of the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) Mikhail Degtyarev.

“Our main goal is to demonstrate that the greatest values in sport are friendship, competition and equal opportunities for talent development,” he said.

Head of the Belarusian delegation, NOC Head of the International Relations Department Vasily Yurchik, thanked Mikhail Degtyarev for the invitation.

“Children are our greatest treasure, and their dreams are priceless. You are one big Olympic family. Share your experiences, strive for success and achieve victories. We believe in your achievements just as we believe in the triumph of goodness and peace,” he said.

The participants attended a panel discussion entitled Like or record: How to make social media your partner?. Among the guest speakers were Olympic figure skating champion Roman Kostomarov, two-time Olympic silver medalist Evgenia Medvedeva, Olympic gymnastics champion Nikita Nagornyy, and Russian cosmonaut and Hero of the Russian Federation Fyodor Yurchikhin.

Nikita Nagornyy and Evgenia Medvedeva shared their experiences of using social media and explained how athletes can develop their personal brands without compromising training and competition.

“It is very important to find the right balance when it comes to social media. I faced this challenge myself. Before the Olympic Games in PyeongChang, I completely quit social media,” Evgenia Medvedeva said.

According to Nikita Nagorny, at first his coaches were skeptical about his interest in social media, but later they changed their minds. For the athlete, filming videos even helped him prepare for competitions. “Sometimes at a world championship you struggle to focus, and then I would turn on the camera and say, ‘Hello, everyone!’ It helped me release excess energy and mentally reset. For me, it became one of the ways to prepare for competitions,” he said.

On the second day, participants explored the world of filmmaking during a guided tour of the Moskino Cinema Park. They went on a bus tour of the Moskva Park’s film locations, seeing where real movies are shot.

Theater and film actress Vladislava Samokhina offered insights into the film industry, spoke about the production of the movie Rodnina and shared practical advice on managing stress before important performances. The young athletes also received guidance from film directors on creating their own productions and had the opportunity to appear on camera themselves.

The International Forum for Young Olympians is held annually to mark International Children’s Day on 1 June. The event brings together athletes aged 14-18 from Russian regions and National Olympic Committees of foreign countries.

The forum is organized by the Russian Olympic Committee with the support of the Russian Anti-Doping Agency (RUSADA).

Press service of the NOC of Belarus

Photos by the NOC of Belarus