The highest aim of the Cypriot government is to strengthen the efforts made to promote healthy sport, the President of the Republic of Cyprus, Nicos Christodoulides said, receiving the “Apollo Nomios” award of the International Association of Sports Law, the Hellenic Centre for Sports Law Research.
Speaking at the award ceremony, which took place at the Ceremonial Hall of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, on Friday afternoon, President Christodoulides stressed that “in the context of this approach to clean sport, we proceeded on 21 October last year to establish the National School of Ethics in Sport, the first to train free of charge those involved or interested in sport” and added that “this is an innovation that transcends the geographical boundaries of Cyprus and the wider Hellenism”.
“We attach particular importance to the promotion of sportsmanship and fair play, which is the answer to competition without moral barriers. That is why my government, among other things, has taken specific initiatives to institutionalise the reward for effort, precisely to instill the mentality that winning is not an end in itself. In this context, we are providing substantial incentives that are embraced by dozens of our athletes”, President Christodoulides underlined.
President Christodoulides added that the Cypriot government is working daily to nurture a new generation of citizens who respect and follow the Olympic values, fair play and purity in sport away from any addictions. “These universal values, which we were privileged to inherit from our distant ancestors, we must pass on to our children. This unparalleled wealth of a unique value system is the solid foundation on which we can build a sustainable future, as Cypriots, as Greeks and as citizens of the world. A future that passes through the consolidation of Sport”, he concluded.
