Kazan Universiade OC gives its thanks to educational institutions
An extended meeting of the Coordination Council for Educational Work under the Rectors' Council of the Republic of Tatarstan was held at the Ministry of Youth Affairs, Sports and Tourism of the Republic of Tatarstan on Wednesday, September 18. It was attended by deputy directors on educational work of secondary specialised education establishments of Kazan, leaders of volunteer centres, the Student League of the Republic of Tatarstan, the republican headquarters of the student labour teams, the FORPOST Law Enforcement Youth Movement, employees of the Ministry of Youth Affairs, Sports and Tourism of the Republic of Tatarstan and the Children and Youth Committee of Kazan, the Creative Youth Academy and the Ministry of the Interior of the Republic of Tatarstan.
Results of the World University Summer Games were summed up during the meeting. The organisers paid tribute to educational institutions for their contribution to the successful planning and delivery of the Summer Universiade, which became the country's most important sporting event of the year.
The 2013 Summer Universiade volunteer programme was an innovative project in the field of youth policy and sports. An international team of volunteers numbering 19,970 people was formed for the first time in the history of modern Russia. That's the number of young people, who worked at the Games in Kazan. They represented 81 constituent entities of the Russian Federation (37 volunteer centres) and 38 countries of the world. It took Russia's regional volunteer centres two years to select and train the army of volunteers. The volunteer management system proved its value and turned out to be quite effective in practice.
Schoolchildren and students of Kazan also worked as temporary staff in service and student labor teams employed for landscaping and public amenities, catering companies, hotels, and restaurants of McDonald's, the Official Partner of the Kazan 2013 Summer Universiade. They performed in the Universiade Park, and became part of the Games Opening and Closing Ceremonies team. And another 4,000 students, led by their curators, attended the Summer Universiade tournaments to support the Russian national student team. Volunteers of the FORPOST Law Enforcement Youth Movement helped to maintain public order in the city. Educational institutions made an invaluable contribution to the Games Organising Committee. And it was all thanks to the well-coordinated teamwork in the build-up to and during the Universiade.
"Today we thank leaders of educational institutions who carry on their shoulders the burden of responsibility for work with young people and students. And we see them as our main partners because for the past three years, we have been doing this hard work side by side: together, we launched the volunteer programme; together, we increased the awareness of volunteering among young people; together, we implemented an outreach programme, encouraged young people to volunteer and carried out recruitment activities. Thanks to a careful guidance of these people, the team of Kazan 2013 volunteers worked without a major hitch at all competition and non-competition venues," said Deputy General Director and Chief of Staff of the Kazan 2013 Executive Directorate, Larisa Sulima.
The ceremony began with the presentation of a video about the recent Summer Universiade. All those present at the ceremony immediately plunged into a state of nostalgia for the good old days. They flashed back to two months ago, when Kazan was swept up in the excitement and euphoria of the Games, and some of those attending the ceremony even agreed to share their memories of the Games with kazan2013.com.
"First of all I would like to express gratitude to my students. I am very glad that they have become part of the Universiade. I saw in their eyes pride for our city, republic and country. Our students worked across several functional areas, and their enthusiasm was exceptional. I think that they derived their strength from kindness and openness which is so common among young people," said the deputy director on educational work of Kazan Pedagogical College, Nadezhda Shamaskaya.
This ceremony is the first of a series of other recognition events in honour of all those who contributed to the success of the Kazan Universiade. The Government of Russia established a commemorative medal dedicated to the 2013 Summer Universiade. "We expect that commemorative medals will be presented and words of gratitude will be expressed by the leadership of the Republic of Tatarstan: the President, the Prime Minister and the Mayor of Kazan. Award certificates are being prepared at the moment, and major awards are yet to be handed," said Larisa Sulima.