With a focus on the regions - how the sports infrastructure in the regions of Belarus is changing

In Belarus, physical activity and sports are traditionally among the state priorities. Now the phased renewal of infrastructure, which, on the one hand, allows to achieve high results in the world arenas, and on the other hand, to maintain health beyond age, is being implemented within the framework of the State Program "Physical Culture and Sport" for 2026-2030. The focus of this five-year plan is on small towns and districts. Modern, multifunctional, universal sports facilities and within walking distance. This is what is being built in the regions today. We visited the sites of sports new buildings of the Gomel region, which will soon open their doors.

Artem Korzun, Electromonter SU-24 OJSC Minskpromstroy. "Shakhtar" for Polesie champions The largest sports facility of the present time on the map of the Gomel region is the sports and health complex "Shakhtar - Polesie". Last summer, the start of construction work was given by the city-forming enterprise of OJSC “Belaruskali”. The large-scale project is being implemented not only in the interests of the large team of the Petrikovsky mining and processing complex, where more than a thousand people work, but in the entire Polesie region. FOC and its capabilities will be available to all.

It is already obvious that this ultra-modern sports facility will become Petrikov’s hallmark. Located at the entrance to the city opposite the new quarter of high-rise residential district North-2, it instantly attracts views, standing out for the non-trivial aesthetics of modern design. Dynamics in interior solutions, and in constructive... Now on this construction site Brownian movement of people and equipment. Up to 200 specialists are involved here every day. The key stage is at the finish line. The head of construction, the representative of the general contractor - the state enterprise "Trest Minskpromstroy" Konstantin Varennikov gives an understanding of the picture as a whole and the current layout of the work:

The construction of the facility, and its total area is about 7500 square meters, includes two stages. The first is at the final stage: it is directly the two-storey sports and health complex. Ready, 99 percent. Here we complete the internal finishing work and installation of equipment, on the external contour - improvement. Entering the facility is a matter of the near future. Construction of the second stage is carried out in parallel. On the territory adjacent to the FOC there will be a playground for beach football and volleyball, a roller ski track, a universal platform with a modern artificial surface for mini-football, volleyball, basketball, a workout location, a children's multifunctional sports and gaming complex. The second stage is scheduled for early 2027.

Konstantin Varennikov. Boxing, swimming, gymnastics - from the possibilities breathtaking. Here, literally before our eyes, everything takes on a complete look. What it will be in the end, proudly tells Zinaida Belomutova, head of the sports and health complex “Shakhtar – Polesie” of the Department of social development and housing and communal services of OJSC “Belaruskali”: – Long-awaited object, in demand. It will not only give residents the opportunity to play sports and maintain health, but also open up completely new promising areas that were not previously cultivated in the area: boxing, martial arts, gymnastics, swimming. To be honest, the possibilities are breathtaking. During the movement, the specialist introduces the layout. There are four halls on the ground floor. On our way is a wrestling and boxing hall. The space is completely decorated. It remains to fill with sports content: install a boxing ring, lay wrestling carpet, mount related equipment. Further, a universal gaming hall designed for mini-football, volleyball, basketball, equipped with the most modern standards, a scoreboard for full-fledged competitions of different levels, stands for 100 seats, there are also balconies for spectators. With us, workers complete the installation of seats. From day to day, football gates, basketball and volleyball racks will be installed.

Another point of active final works is the gym, a space of almost 200 square meters. Almost ready to go. The latest generation of sports equipment is being installed. In total, there will be seven cardio machines and about 20 power units, including a five-sided power station, rowing thrust. Complete set for professionals and amateurs. Nearby is a universal gymnastics hall. It has the maximum for fine sports, and for popular fitness areas.

Take the stairs to the second floor. Visitors can do this by using the elevator. Here, the heart of FOK is the pool. Two bowls. 25-meter for sports and recreational swimming is designed for four tracks, small - 10-meter - for swimming training. Builders work in local areas. Initiating, checking systems. Zinaida Belomutova adds a really important touch: Our fitness complex will be really accessible to everyone. The maximum barrier-free environment has been created so that people with disabilities can also maintain and strengthen their health using the resources of the FOC. For example, we install a mobile lift in the pool, which will allow swimming, rehabilitation for children and adults with limited mobility. The development of the architectural project was carried out by specialists of JSC "Belgorkhimprom", who took care of every detail. Initially, Shakhtar Polesie was conceived as a universal multifunctional space for sports and healthy activity for everyone.

Rebooting the existing sports infrastructure is also an effective way to modernize facilities, adapting them to current requirements. According to this principle, the existing arenas built decades ago are reformatted annually in the districts of the Gomel region. In Buda-Koshelevo one of these will soon be put into operation.

The place of transformation is the central city stadium. A modern sports complex is being created on its territory, which will allow the district center to fully develop football. Builders of the Nesvizh company PMK-2010 are involved at the facility. The complex is already well visible. The main work behind, clarifies the picture of the day Brigadier Mikhail Shelyuta:

- The object of reconstruction includes the stadium itself, the construction of an administrative and household building, as well as the construction of a workout platform, a hockey box for seasonal use. We are at the completion stage.

The one-storey building will accommodate a gym equipped with multifunctional sports equipment, facilities for applied sports, showers and changing rooms. The stadium will appear in a modern format - with an artificial lawn, treadmills - with an artificial canvas that meets athletics standards.

The interior decoration of the administrative and household building in pastel colors is approaching the final. In one of the premises, where the coaching room will be located, Daner Khurbayev, a builder from Uzbekistan, works on painting the walls. We're talking about life and business. Happily sharing:

Second year in Belarus, in this construction company. Everything is completely satisfied: working conditions, good salary, stable volumes. And I like the country very much - calm, comfortable, hospitable, friendly people. The object is simple, but there are its own features, for example, the device of the football field. Lots of specific requirements. To understand: the stadium is made in the form of an envelope, which is necessary for water runoff and drainage. It's a laborious process.

His partner, compatriot Furkatbek Ibragimov, adds that a lot of specialized equipment worked on the construction of the stadium: rinks, graders. The key is over. It remains to lay the upper layer - the artificial lawn itself, to spill with quartz sand. And the arena for football battles will be ready to take not only local teams, but also players from other areas of the region, including the training camp. We have all the infrastructure for that. The chief specialist of the education department of the Buda-Koshelevsky district executive committee Oksana Chechko does not give doubt:

- Such a sports complex is very necessary for the city. Football is on the rise in the neighborhood. Popular among children. In educational institutions and interest groups there are groups where children are engaged in mini-football, football. They show very decent results. There is also an adult team “Buda-Koshelevo”, which plays in the second league. Now, having received a modern specialized base, we will be able to open a football section for children aged seven and older in the near future. And this is additional opportunities for physical development for children and adolescents, achievements in professional sports.

In Chechersk, it is planned to reconstruct the existing stadium, which after large-scale work is transformed into a multi-sport center. Here will be built a modern football field with grass, a combined field for football and volleyball, a workout zone and a hockey box. For athletics fans, treadmills and a jump hole are equipped. The facility also provides for the construction of a new building of the administrative and household building, which will house sports and gyms, comfortable changing rooms for athletes.

The development of design and estimate documentation for the construction of a sports and health complex in Lelchitsy has been completed. Preliminary FOC will include small and large bowls of the swimming pool. Weightlifting and boxing halls are planned, which are actively developing in the district center. Without affordable infrastructure, there will be no mass sports, and without mass sports, high-achieving sports. This thesis is the driving force for improving and expanding the network of such facilities in the Gomel region. Last year, stadiums were put into operation in Elsk, Oktyabrsky, the urban village of Kopatkevichi, Petrikovsky district, a roller ski track in Svetlogorsk, a swimming pool in Khoiniki. In 2026, the infrastructure of new sports opportunities was supplemented by the stadium in Loyev, a glide with administrative and domestic premises in the Rogachev Sports Children and Youth School of the Olympic Reserve No. 2 named after N. S. Gorbachev. In total, over the past five years, about 20 large sports facilities have been introduced. It's not just construction. This is an investment in people’s health, in the education of young people, in the future of small areas and the region as a whole.

On the first floor of the sports and recreation complex "Shakhtar - Polesie" in Petrikov, there is a location for playing chess, on the second - a darts hall. The FOC will operate an electronic access control system using special bracelets. Among modern solutions, for example, and automatic control of roller shutters in the universal gaming hall for smart regulation of daylight. In the large bowl of the pool there is an additional track for quenching the waves, which makes swimming as comfortable and safe as possible, especially during high-speed training. To observe how children are engaged on the water, parents can through a special viewing window. In the parking lot adjacent to the FOC, motorists will have two electric refueling stations.

HERE AND NOW

As part of the “Sport for All” initiative, the Presidential Sports Club, together with local authorities, the Development Bank and the Belarusian Football Federation, opened a renovated multifunctional sports ground on November 7 in the agro-town of Yeremino, Gomel district. It is located on the basis of the specialized children and youth school of the Olympic reserve of the Gomel district. Mini-football and basketball courts are equipped here, a complex of power simulators is installed.