With highs and lows, 2017 is nearing its end. It is a good time for conclusions. On this occasion, IPN has gathered good thought from all over the globe, this time only good thoughts, from decision-makers and from those on the receiving end of these decisions. What good has come of 2017? This is the question we posed to the people who have accepted to join us in our pursuit of the good in our surroundings and in the events that affect us. Although many things do not follow our wishes, winners are the people and societies that learn to see challenges and lesser things as extra opportunities to get involved and make things better. For each of the topics we approach, we provide rankings that reflect the opinions of those who developed them. Read further for the good things 2017 has brought to sports.
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Top 5 from the Ministry of Education, Culture and Research
1. Stimulating the activity of workers in the field of sports
A government decision on March 10 came to improve the financial conditions of sport workers: monthly stipends for professional athletes have been increased by 50% so that the stipends now vary between 3000 and 25000 lei; food and dietary allowances, prizes and awards, wages for coaches and other financial means have been increased on average by 75%; awards for special results at the Olympics and Paralympics have been increased by 40% on average.
2. Promoting sports in Moldova
The Ministry supported the organization of world and European championships in Moldova, as well as international congresses of specialized sports federations, international tournaments and so on. For the first time, Moldova hosted the European Championship of Small Countries at basketball, with 8 participants.
3. Improving coaching conditions
500 athletes received sports gear and 5 sport halls have been renovated and furnished with the required equipment: the tennis school, the halls of the Sports Center for Training the National Teams, the Athletics Hall and the Football School.
4. Partnership with Moldovan sports federations
60 sports organizations, including specialized federations and the National Olympic Committee, received 31 million lei in 2017. 400 national events have been organized and over 1000 athletes attended international events, a growth of 25% compared to last year.
5. Competitive results
Overall, our athletes brought home 160 medals from world and European championships: 40 medals in Olympic sports and 120 in the others.
Top 5 from the Association of Sport Press (APSM):
1. The results of the Moldovan football champions in the Europa League
Moldovan champions Sheriff Tiraspol won 9 points in the group stage of the Europa League and nearly qualified for the knock-out stages.
2. The medals of WT taekwondo fighter Aaron Cook, bronze winner at the World Championships and at Gran Prix London, and silver winner at Gran Prix Moscow
Aaron Cook also won the trophy for the most spectacular kick in taekwondo, awarded for the first time by World Taekwondo.
3. The results of Greco-Roman wrestler Daniel Cataraga – 5th place at the World Championships for seniors and 1st place at the World Championships for juniors.
4. Sports – equal opportunities
Para-taekwondo fighter Petru Cataraga ranked 2nd at the IWAS WORLD GAMES 2017 in Portugal and 3rd at the European Championships in Bulgaria.
5. The launch of APSM’s quarterly magazine Sports in Moldova
This is the only sports and physical education magazine in Moldova. It will cover the performance of our athletes, the results of sports federations and the achievements of our representatives in national and international tournaments.
