The municipality aims to create in Chisinau a sports complex that will enable to do various types of sports, from football to swimming and athletics, and to host championships. Also, the sports infrastructure of the 13 sports schools of Chisinau is being continuously rehabilitated, and the demand for sports education among children increases from year to year. The municipal allowances for sports activities and events in the past five years also increased, from 6 to 20 million lei.



Sports education

Andrei Pavaloi, deputy head of the General Division of Education, Youth and Sports of the Chisinau City Hall, said that absolutely all types of sports can be found in the 13 sports schools of the municipality, including fencing, basketball, volleyball, contact sports, water sports, football, etc. The information can also be accessed on the online platform Extrașcolar. . In September, the parents submit a request to the institution’s administration and the child is enrolled in a group depending on the requested sport. At the moment, about 6,000 children are enrolled in these schools. Anyone can attend a sports school, but the parent is going to come with the child to have his/her skills tested and they will be given recommendations which activities are more suitable for him.



Tests are also organized at the Sports Theoretical High School “Gloria”, the Municipal Sports Boarding High School in Buiucani and Municipal Sports High School No. 2 in Ciocana, where 940 students study according to the school program, but also attend sports or specialized classes. The schedule is designed in such a way that students manage to combine sport and learning. Enrollment in these institutions is performed through the E-school platform.



The General Division of Education, Youth and Sports, together with the City Hall, is actively involved in the construction of stadiums and the opening of specialized football classes in institutions that do not sepiolite in sports. There are currently 16 institutions where the “Football in Schools” project is developed, respectively, in each of them there are two or three classes that play football. Students from these classes participate in the championships organized by the Moldovan Football Federation and the City Hall, winning leading places. The children also enjoy additional food offered by the City Hall. For the next year of studies, another 5-7 institutions are to be selected to participate in this project. Approaches will be made by the directors of educational institutions.



“We intend to continue developing the sports infrastructure in the next four years, especially the equipment of sports schools, but also the completion of repair works in those institutions where we still have to do this so that we have a modern sports base for both students and professional athletes who train there. At the same time, we continue the “Football in Schools” project. Recently, we put into operation the stadium at “Alexandru Ioan Cuza” institution. In the shortest time, we are going to put into operation the stadium at “George Meniuc” High School, “Olimp” High School, “Universul” High School and for this year we continue to plan the rehabilitation of at least 5-7 more stadiums, as we do annually so that during the next four years we will have at least half of the institutions with proper and modern sports infrastructure,” stated Andrei Pavaloi.

For teachers from sports schools and sports institutions, the municipality annually grants financial sources for summer rest, but also training during the summer period both in sports and recreation facilities in the country and abroad. Trips are organized to recreation facilities where there is sports infrastructure so that students and teachers can properly train to achieve results.

Sport for all

For the second year in a row, the Chisinau Sports Festival is taking place. It promotes sports among the population, both professional and mass sports. Within the event, a fair of sports schools involving professional athletes, medalists at international tournaments, Olympics and also sports institutions and federations is staged. These come with masterclasses that help parents see what suits their child best. Andrei Pavaloi said that, after the first edition, the requests for enrollment in sports schools increased by more than 20% compared to previous years. In this year’s edition, the event was attended not only by sports federations and schools, but also by associations that practice not only Olympic sports disciplines, such as the circus artistic gymnastics association. Among the guests were athletes who will represent Moldova at the Olympics Games.



“We want everyone to do sports, not only professional sports, and we have sought to promote sports at a mass level, especially since, in recent years, practically all the parks in the city were rehabilitated and sports infrastructure was built in parks. This gives everyone the opportunity to do particular types of sports in these parks,” said Andrei Pavaloi.

For the current year and in the coming years, the development of sports infrastructure in parks, such as mini basketball courts, tennis tables, arm-wrestling tables, is further planned. With the development of infrastructure, the list of sporting events is also expanded. In Chisinau, there are held city championships, Mayor’s Cups, traditional weekend sports events. In 2023, the City Hall allocated over 5 million lei for the program for co-financing projects for sports and other sports activities at local and international levels, with a total of 24 projects being carried out, of which 11 were international competitions and 13 were large-scale events staged in Chisinau. By the end of this year, a Sports Agency will be created in Chisinau to deal with sports events outside sports schools and to promote sports among the population.

Milena Macarciuc, IPN