On December 24 the Christmas Basketball Tournament between veterans and juniors was organized at the basketball club “Minsk-2006”. The tournament was organized by the UN Population Fund and the Belarusian Basketball Federation.

The purpose of the event was promoting solidarity between generations, sharing of experience with young athletes and promoting healthy lifestyles at any age.

Just before the Christmas Tournament, from December 1 to December 15, honorary basketball veterans shared their experience and passed their knowledge and skills on to the beginners during master classes in various cities and towns of Belarus. In a friendly atmosphere the kids learned about the benefits of doing various sports during one’s entire life, and how important it is to take care of oneself and one’s health from childhood.

The participants had an opportunity to demonstrate what they had learnt during master classes during a Christmas Tournament match where they played 3x3: basketball veterans Andrei Snytin, Grigory Duvakin, Vassily Nedelcho against young players Maria Adaschik, Vladislav Nikulsky and Maksim Lutych. The game was intense, no one would give up, both teams scored points equally, but experience won the day eventually! The team of basketball veterans won the game with a one-point advantage.

“Today when young and elderly people are the two most important age groups in the development of the society we consider it very important to promote intergenerational continuity in all areas of life, including sports. Sport helps us be fit at all times, aim for the best and stay in good shape even after retirement; besides, sports veterans have an enormous amount of energy, experience and wisdom in store, which they gladly share with the young. From now on we plan to organize such events with various sports associations”, says Ms. Tatyana Haplichnik, Programme Analyst, UNFPA in Belarus.

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