Rustam Minnikhanov: Sport is one of the priorities of the socio-economic development of Tatarstan

On February 21, in Tolyatti, speaking at a meeting of the Council under the Presidential Plenipotentiary Envoy to the Volga Federal District, Tatarstan President Rustam Minnikhanov said that sport is one of the priorities of the socio-economic development of Tatarstan.

The meeting chaired by Presidential Plenipotentiary Envoy to the Volga Federal District Igor Komarov considered the development of mass sports and physical education in the district.

Speaking at the meeting, Komarov said that the development of mass sports is considered through the health and working capacity of citizens, improving the quality of life, and through economic potential. He reminded that Russian President Vladimir Putin pays great attention to the development of mass sports and physical education. In particular, Putin has stressed many times that developing sports in the country and increasing the number of citizens going in for sports are the priorities today.

Making a report on the development of the sports reserve training system in Tatarstan, Minnikhanov said that over the past ten years, thanks to the support of the country's leadership, the republic has hosted major international sports events such as the 27th World Summer Universiade, the World Aquatics Championships, the FIFA Confederations Cup and matches of the FIFA 2018 World Cup.

“We hold about 30 major international sports events every year. Today, almost half citizens of the republic go in for sports regularly, which is more than 1 million 700 thousand people. In accordance with the Decree of the Russian President, our task is to involve more than two million Tatarstan people in sports activities by 2024,” Minnikhanov said.

He noted that the republic is in the lead in the country and the Volga Federal District in terms of the average figures, and is also one of the leaders in the Volga Federal District in terms of the involvement of rural and economically active people in sports due to sports infrastructure created in Tatarstan recently.

Today, there are more than 11 thousand sports facilities, including 235 swimming pools, 48 ice arenas and 2,000 gyms in the republic.

A long-term project to overhaul sports facilities was launched in 2019, he added.

Minnikhanov reminded that Tatarstan is always ready to share experience in terms of promotion and development of physical culture and sports.