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Publikováno: Po 23.01.2023
Region: Celá ČR
ODM - Conference to promote youth sports appealed: Let's take practical steps!
What should the mutual cooperation between the state and regions in the field of sport look like? And is sport an important topic for society? These questions were reopened by the Conference on the Promotion of Youth Sports. It was organised by the Czech Olympic Committee, the Regional Governor's Office and CEPS on the opening day of the Winter Olympics for Children and Youth, which will last in the Hradec Králové Region until 26 January. Representatives of the state, regions and sports organisations debated in Hradec Králové.
Jiří Kejval, the chairman of the Czech Olympic Committee, first reminded the definition of Olympism, in which the word education is used: "And it is aimed at children. They are the reason why we are here today. It is important to say that Olympism is not when someone goes to the Olympics and wins a medal. That is why the Czech Olympic Committee has made a significant commitment to the education of young people in its projects."
In connection with sport, there is also often talk about how to raise funds. "Yet the health care costs associated with overweight and obesity are 132 billion a year. In 1991, we had three percent of obese children, and by 2021, we have 16.4 percent," Kejval pointed out. "The resources are there, we just need to know how to use them and where we can reach for them. Sport will help children, the whole generation and the entire Czech economy. We will be a healthier society and fulfil the ideas of Olympism."
Ondřej Šebek, the head of the National Sports Agency, called for more communication across the board, not only in the sports environment. "It would be advisable to coordinate the different components so that they perceive their responsibility for sport. I would like to see, for example, the Ministry of Health put more emphasis on supporting sport. I see this as an important appeal," he said. Martin Červíček, senator and governor of the Hradec Králové Region, added that he would welcome better planning. "So that we can better allocate what we will spend money on - not only on major events, but also on infrastructure," he explained.
MP Karel Hass spoke about the forthcoming state amendment on sport. "It's one piece of the puzzle and there are five red threads running through it. One of them is just more effective planning of sporting events or the point that concerns school sports. What is monitored by the Ministry of Education and what is monitored by the NSA. The amendment would impose new obligations on the agency."
MP Michaela Šebelová pointed to a paradigm in society that she said is not conducive to movement: "Sport has become elusive for some people and the debate is reduced to talking about money. We should talk more about movement. The situation around elementary movement for children is alarming."
Filip Šuman, vice-president of the Czech Olympic Committee, agreed. "Unless something changes dramatically, we are facing a scary future. Today, it's about the fact that most children who move play sports in an organised way," he said. "This conference is to make an appeal. If a few years ago we were in trouble, then came the covid, came the energy crisis, now we are in a situation where we have to take practical steps."
Stable environment as a foundation
In the second panel, sociologist Matouš Veselský from the University of New York in Prague showed how to use sport as a tool to overcome the crisis. "Sport as a mirror of society," he depicted, and Petr Briza, vice-president of the International Ice Hockey Federation, added: "Sport connects and carries values. Sokol, for example, has always wanted to educate not only athletes, but also to educate and uphold social customs. Today we have shrunk to just surviving from year to year. It's a really difficult situation. We are not able to provide a stable environment for sport, so we cannot have long-term results."
At the end of the meeting, the governors of five regions - Petr Kulhánek, governor of the Karlovy Vary Region, Ivo Vondrák, governor of the Moravian-Silesian Region, Josef Suchánek, governor of the Olomouc Region, Petra Pecková, governor of the Central Bohemian Region and Rudolf Špoták, governor of the Pilsen Region - debated the support of sport. They agreed that the Czech sports environment should be more united.
Youth sports have long been supported by CEPS, a partner of the Children and Youth Olympics and the conference. "Within our programme we support hundreds of projects from playgrounds to sports for the disabled. Supporting sport is one of our main pillars," said Hana Klímová, Director of Communications. "We want to bring joy to the regions where we operate and beyond."
AUTHOR: Markéta Kosová
PHOTO: ČOV/ BARBORA REICHOVÁ
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