Minister of Physical Culture and Sports of the Sverdlovsk Region Leonid Rapoport called Sverdlovsk athletes real contenders for medals in the Olympics in Pyeongchang (South Korea). The official made this statement during a working meeting with Governor Yevgeny Kuyvashev on December 6, 2017.

"Now in the Sverdlovsk region are ready to compete for the Olympic medals of 14 athletes in eight sports. All of them are real candidates for gold, silver and bronze awards. In accordance with your instructions, we conducted all necessary training work, created all conditions for our athletes. Evidence of this was the receipt of the Olympic license by our athlete Julia Skokova, "said the head of the Ministry of Sport.

Yevgeny Kuyvashev set the task, in spite of the removal of the Russian national team from participation in the 2018 Olympics, to preserve the training volumes of the Olympians. Minister assured that work in this direction will be continued.

"The situation with the upcoming Olympics showed the weakness of international sports management, the lack of competent experts in the anti-doping field, what remains to be done. In any case, the final decision on participating in the Games always remains with the athlete, "said Rapoport.

Kuyvashev set Rapoport the task in 2018 to increase the amount of attracting Uralians to HLS, ensuring the availability of sports facilities and the possibility of physical education and sports.

"Whatever events occurred in the sport of higher achievements, speaking of the development of sports in the Sverdlovsk region, we primarily have in mind the increased availability of sports infrastructure and the creation of conditions for physical education for all residents. Today we have achieved good results in terms of the number involved in sports, we are introducing a lot of sports facilities. We must continue to work in this direction, "the governor said..

In his opinion, the World Cup in 2018 will be the catalyst for the development of mass sports.

"I am sure that the main legacy of the championship will be that thousands of young residents of our region are inspired by the example of football players, will engage in sports, will lead a healthy lifestyle," Kuyvashev said..

For five years in the Sverdlovsk region, 80 new sports facilities were built, most of which are objects of walking distance. Annually in the region about a dozen vokaut-sites are built. Over the past three years, 11 ice arenas have been built in the Sverdlovsk region, six more are under construction.

"The number of sports facilities built during the last five-year plan is comparable to the number of objects that were surrendered for the entire post-Soviet period," Rapoport.