Previous week Media reported about the start of the dialogue between Moldova and Austria in the area of winter sports. During last time the interest in the winter sports in our country has been refreshed and Moldova has already been able to win gold and silver medals of the European Championship. Now the contacts with European winter sports leaders have been established. We decided to inquire with the Winter Sports Association President Dmitri Torner, why it is Austria that was chosen for negotiations on exchange of experiences with Moldova , why it is the Ministry of Defense of this country and what is the particular interest to the winter sports disciplinas right now?
Dmitri, the winter season in every sports disciplinas has finished, but regarding your Facebook the season still stays on for you. You had a meeting with the Austrian Defense Minister , discussed the interaction issues between two organisations – The Winter Sports Association of the Republic of Moldova and Army Sports Association of Austria. What is the reason for this kind of activity?
Yes, you are right. But the season has been finished only for the athletes. The season lasts all year around for the sports organisations such as the Biathlon Federation of the Republic of Moldova « Thatch your roof before the rain begins» – it is often said . Seriously, after the season completion we are focused on the organizational issues. We are actively developing the contacts with the European colleagues and actively
learning from their experience . That’s what was the focus of the meeting with the Austrian Defense Minister Mrs Klaudia Tanner. It sounds a bit exotic for us – where is the army and where is the sports? But people of the older generation well remember organizations like VSAAAN (Voluntary Society for Assistance to the Army, Aviation and Navy) As we can see from the Austrian experience, these kinds of organizations are still relevant in Europe.
The Austrian Army sports association is the analog (in some ways) of VSAAAN. It was found about 100 years ago and it is functioning successfully until now . The idea of mine – to create an Austrian-like organisation in Moldova.
At the meeting, we were able to discuss a number of issues, which hopefully will form the basis of future cooperation. She informed , how it works in Austria and how the system of interaction has been built. Since I just recently took over as head of the Winter Sports Association of the Republic of Moldova, we are drawn to this particular experience. We intend to develop the winter sports in Moldova and adopt the best practices.
Why is the Austrian experience ?
We attentively studied the experience of several European countries and summarized that the Austrian model is one of the most successful and adaptive for Moldova. Austrian athletes take high places in the international competitions, not only in the winter sports. The sports clubs are developing in parallel and the competition is growing. Interaction with the Defense Ministry, with the Ministry of Interior is a win-win cooperation. In this regard we are developing not only the sports, but also growing up a new generation of athletes, employing retired athletes , raising up the prestige of the army and law enforcement agencies. I hope that our initiatives will be supported at the governmental level . It would open up a completely new layer of cooperation. The main point here is the coincidence of the interests of the state and society.
So it is the state that should give the impetus to this kind of cooperation?
It must be a reciprocal, mutual relationship. The sports organizations are much more mobile in that sense, but a lot depends on the state as well. I made sure of that when I met with Claudia Tanner. She is a proactive person, she is in constant dialog with the Austrian Army Sports Association. For your information, in the Austrian government, the Vice Chancellor is responsible for the development of the sports. This indicates its high importance for the state. We will be able to give a significant impetus to the development of the sports in Moldova by creating such a model of interaction between the authorities and the sports association.
As we can see from the photo, Mrs. Minister was enthusiastic about the meeting?!
I think so. Mrs. Tanner is a highly professional, vigorous and principled person, by the way she is the first female Minister of Defense in Austria. Another interesting detail is that under Ms. Tanner’s leadership, for the first time since World War II, Austria mobilized its military reserves to fight the COVID-19 pandemic, provided food, medical support and carried out the police operations.
As I noticed during our dialogue , the Austrian Defense Minister was imbued with the idea of cooperation with Moldova. I am generally impressed with the Ministry’s approach to share good practices. We have agreed on several meetings in Austria. We will familiarize ourselves with the main training base of the Austrian Army Sports Association in Hochfilzen. We will learn in practice how it works, and will see it with our own eyes. I would really like representatives of the Moldovan Ministry of Defense and Ministry of interior to join us.
Have you been able to reach concrete agreements with the Austrian Defense Ministry?
Now it is a preparation phase and we are just building cooperation. We would like to formalize our relations in a memorandum of cooperation and develop on its basis. Fortunately, we have found positive feedback from our colleagues and I am very optimistic about this. I believe we can make this work.
Have you already sought our Government representatives? What is their feedback ?
We have had preliminary talks with the representatives of the Ministry of interior . There is a “Dynamo” base in Chisinau and we would like to implement our initiatives there – to update the material-technical base , to create conditions for training of the athletes. Our biathletes are training there from time to time. This is an up-and-coming collaboration and I hope that we will find out the feedback. In the context of the European integration processes, I am confident that the main stakeholders attention will be paid on.
But Moldova is not a winter country. Even in more northern European countries, the climate has changed and there are problems with the snow cover. What are the prospects for winter sports in Moldova in general?
Climate change is definitely one of the main ones today. By the way, I would like to mention that the International Biathlon Union keeps abreast and puts a lot of effort into sustainable development. For example, they refused fluorine-containing lubricants for skis in order to reduce the carbon footprint. I am impressed by the fact that the management sees biathlon as an environmentally friendly sport and they are doing a great job to become a thought leader in this direction among the international federations. In particular, the target is to become climate neutral by the 2030s. This is a responsible position!
As for the outlook, I am enthusiastic . Otherwise, I would never have agreed to take a lead either from the Biathlon Federation of the Republic of Moldova or the Winter Sports Association . By the example of the biathlon we have already proved that we are competitive – for the last three seasons our Alina Stremous became the European champion and twice – vice-champion. Therefore, I am convinced that we can revive other winter sports – cross-country skiing and luge.
As far as I’m concerned, Moldovan biathletes mainly train in Europe?
Yes, almost all training is held there. In Italy, Austria, Switzerland, Slovenia, and other countries. There’s a lot linked with logistics , so we choose those locations that are as comfortable as possible for our athletes. At the end of the season, the athletes partially keep their physical fit in Moldova. But In order to get better training we definitely need a sports base, infrastructure. Now there are artificial snowing technologies, and this would be the optimal solution for training the athletes. And related infrastructure – gyms, treadmills, shooting ranges and so on would give an opportunity for representatives of other sports to prepare for the competitions.
You also mentioned that one of the main points is to prepare the sports reserve?
Exactly so, but not only that. Today, a lot of athletes in Moldova reach a certain level. But as soon as their career ends, they have complexities – there are problems with employment. The sports infrastructure in Moldova is not so developed that all those who devoted themselves to sports could find themselves after the end of their careers. That’s why I intend to implement the Austrian model. There, athletes have guaranteed employment after their sports career. They realize themselves as coaches, section leaders, instructors, including for training personnel for the Ministry of Defense and the Ministry of Interior They have unique, invaluable experience and I would really like it to be provided. Yesterday’s athletes train tomorrow’s athletes. This is the continuity of the generations. We boost progressive movement and create the entire system of sports training.
What are your next plans in communications with European representatives from the sports?
Scale- up. For the coming period – April-May – I have planned a number of meetings with the heads of the Federations of different winter sports disciplines in Austria, meetings at the highest level of decision-making are expected, but I can’t share with you more information right now. On April 25th I will already hold the negotiations with the leaders of the International Luge Federation in the office of the organization in Berchtesgaden in Germany. I am aiming to take the best practices in Europe and implement the same in Moldova. We have wonderful people, enthusiasts, we have rich sports traditions and we should develop them. My greatest wish is to see Moldova as a prosperous country that creates all conditions for youth to develop. We invest in our common future!
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