At a meeting with Olympians in the regional executive committee, the creation of a modern trampoline center in Vitebsk was discussed

This peculiar "memorandum of intent" concluded the celebration in the regional executive committee of our Olympic heroes with the participation of the head of the region, Nikolai Sherstnev, and the chairman of the regional council of deputies, Vladimir Terentyev.

It all began, naturally, with gifts, certificates, and flowers. They were awarded to the winner of the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics, Vladislav Goncharov, the head coach of the national team, Olga Vlasova, the team coach, Vasily Shulikin, Anna Gorchenok, who reached the final stage of the competition, and Tatyana Petrenya from Mogilev, who took 5th place at the Games and trains at the Vitebsk base.

According to Nikolai Sherstnev, he closely watched the performances of the trampolinists and is glad that Vladislav managed to do what the girls did not quite achieve: to pull themselves together at the decisive moment and show true masculine character. He noted the special role of Olga Vlasova in his development, because without a good teacher, there will be no good student. The main thing is not to stop at what has been achieved and to repeat the success.

Athletes and specialists shared their emotions from the main competitions of the 4-year period. They admitted that the atmosphere was simply wonderful, and when Vladislav Goncharov performed his phenomenal championship jump, the whole hall rose in unison.

Olga Vlasova proposed a topic for a serious conversation. At the tea party following the celebration, she announced that, unfortunately, the current hall at Vitebsk Secondary School No. 45 does not have sufficient height for our Olympic champion to hone his skills. Instead of a comfortable 15 meters, it is now half that height.

The problem found understanding among the regional authorities. According to Nikolai Sherstnev, a new hall could be built in the likeness of the recently opened "Olimpiec" sports complex in Orsha. The head of the sports and tourism department of the regional executive committee, Vasily Zakharevich, also spoke about the location for the construction of the future hall: it could be the territory behind the Palace of Sports in the regional center.

Now the question is about

sources of funding. It is unacceptable, as Nikolay Nikolayevich repeatedly emphasized, that funds for sports are spent on a residual basis after other sectors of the national economy: "These are our children – our future." But for now, our region has serious problems with this point. We do not have good halls for team sports, and there are many more people who want to participate than the existing premises can accommodate. And without creating a base, there will be no results. No matter how difficult it may be, funds must be found for this.

The issue must also be raised at the republican level. According to Olga Vlasova, if a hall is built, the Ministry of Sports and Tourism is ready to supply it with modern equipment. Olga Anatolyevna intends to discuss this issue at the upcoming meeting-celebration with the President of our country. The sport that brought Belarus its only gold medal at the 2016 Olympic Games must develop, and the center of this development must naturally be in Vitebsk.

By the way, the stellar success of Vladislav Goncharov caused a stir among Vitebsk parents. They strive to enroll their children in trampoline jumping (currently, about 280 people are involved in the department). Accordingly, the enrollment is also increasing.

Ales Byньkov. Photo by Dmitry OSIPOV. "Vitebskiye Vesti".