Events

MINSK, 23 November (BelTA) – Belarusian and Russian athletes should have equal rights in team sports, Belarus’ Sports and Tourism Minister Alexander Shamko said during the joint board meeting of the sports ministries of Belarus and Russia in Smolensk on 23 November, BelTA learned from the press service of the ministry.

The Russian Ministry of Sport issued the ordinance in August 2015 to put a cap on the number of foreign players on the roster (up to five athletes) in the Russian clubs of the Kontinental Hockey League. The status of players from Belarus, Kazakhstan, Armenia, and Kyrgyzstan has not been spelled out in the document. In September 2015 the KHL Board of Directors introduced amendments in the regulation, under which Belarusians were considered foreign players.

According to Alexander Shamko, the issue will be considered by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Union State of Belarus and Russia on 27 November. The Belarusian sports minister expressed confidence that specialists would be able to find a way out and that the citizens of the two countries would be provided with equal rights.

During the joint board meeting in Smolensk the Sports Ministries of Belarus and Russia signed an agreement on major areas of cooperation, including the implementation of joint research projects, improvement of the sports reserve training system, development of a joint calendar plan of the most important sport events, implementation of the student exchange program, joint education and scientific projects by students, postgraduates and young scientists of Russian and Belarusian sports universities, coordination of the activity of the federations in the preparation for international sports competitions.