MINSK, 9 February (BelTA) – We expected higher results from Belarusian athletes at the 2016 Summer Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Belarus' Sports and Tourism Minister Alexander Shamko said at the ministerial board meeting on 9 February, BelTA has learned.
In September 2016 the Sports and Tourism Ministry held a joint meeting with the National Olympic Committee of Belarus to analyze Belarus' performance at the Rio Games 2016. “The results were summarized, the mistakes were analyzed. I must admit that the results in Rio were not the ones we expected. Some athletes failed to fulfill their potential due to different reasons. Others were simply not allowed to perform. The Belarusian men's canoe and kayak national team was banned from participating in the Olympic Games. The Belarusian athletes were acquitted. But this is not much comfort as we lost the chance of winning more medals. In the number of sports, however, we did not achieve the results we expected to. Belarus took medals only in seven out of 23 sports,” noted Alexander Shamko.
The minister stressed that the national team training system has been considerably altered in Belarus. “The system became more flexible, manageable and well-structured. Specialists of the national Olympic training centers are now expected to show more enterprise and creativity, but also careful scheduling and fulfillment of the decisions,” Alexander Shamko said.
Belarus won a total of 542 (160 gold, 173 silver and 209 bronze) medals at the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, European Championships and World Cups in 2016. 146 athletes qualified for the 2016 Rio Games, with 123 athletes taking part in 23 sports of the Summer Games. Belarus won nine (one gold, four silver and four bronze) medals.
The sports awards ceremony was held as part of the ministerial board meeting. Athletes and sports workers were presented with badges of the Sports and Tourism Ministry in recognition of their contribution to the promotion of physical education and sport in Belarus. Rio medalists Aleksandra Gerasimenya, Mariya Mamoshuk and Ibragim Saidov, and also Olympic champion Leonid Geishtor were among the awardees.
