You might be forgiven for wondering whether the decision of newspapers around the world to feature sport on the back pages was a tribute, a concession, or originally something to keep it out of the way of the ‘real news’.
It wasn’t to last. Column inches crept backwards through the paper until weekend football results became page upon page of detailed analysis, gossip, news, interviews – all this across many sports. Some countries, such as Italy, started newspapers devoted to only sport, and at one point the European country had three national daily newspapers covering nothing but.
By now, some sports journalists have got so good that they don’t even tell us who won, rather, take us on a journey of intrigue weaving intricate social references into wise observations recounted in Dickensian prose, the very best of them as talented as any writer ever to lift a pen.
But whyever do we need six sports pages crammed with genius when we know who got the goals and when? Simple. Sport is not just about two-nils and nine-dart finishes, it is one of the pillars of a functioning society. Just ask Nelson Mandela:
“Sport has the power to change the world. It has the power to inspire. It has the power to unite people in a way that little else does.
“Sport can create hope where once there was only despair. It is more powerful than governments in breaking down racial barriers. It laughs in the face of all types of discrimination.”
That is not worth just a few paragraphs, as according to Kazakhstan’s President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, speaking at an awards ceremony for Asian Games and Asian Para Games winners and medallists:
“Every child in Kazakhstan should have the opportunity to take part in sport. This is not simply a social project; it is a strategic political task. Future champions are growing up today in the most remote corners of our country, and we must create equal opportunities for every one of them. That is the ultimate goal of the idea of a just Kazakhstan.”
With this in mind, as Kazakhstan Today reports, the country is making a massive investment in sport, as well as the commitment to hosting major international events. More than 616 billion tenge has been allocated to various sporting initiatives over the last five years and flicking through some of the ‘back-page’ news here you’d be forgiven for thinking that the country is winning just about everything at the moment, with a new champion in this or that announced almost every day. Many of these are youth sports players, highlighting the main advantage of the programme, to train future champions.
In other, yet the same, news, it has been announced that the country will welcome some of the very best in 2027 as it stages five world championships. The sports included will be boxing, judo, taekwondo, table tennis and esports, and the major UEFA Congress will also arrive for the 51st staging of the event which is of interest to football fans and players globally. Add to this the 2027 World Junior Short Track Speed Skating Championships, and the commitment to sport is self-evident, further echoed by the President once more:
“Kazakhstan is steadily strengthening its standing as a sporting nation.”
That I am aware of, there are no verifiable statistics globally to illustrate how many young people have been kept out of crime by sport, alongside the improved health they experience when keeping active and making better lifestyle choices, but chances are it’d be a very big number. Then, how many have improved self-esteem, sense of purpose, competitive yet respectful spirit, stronger character, better self-discipline, an overall sense of achievement, and before I run out of column inches, more friendships?
For even those who come last, if they allow themselves to understand the value of participation, they have still achieved something and become part of a community. And who knows, last place is not forever, even the greatest talents don’t always start with a win.
Paying to help this happen is one of the smartest investments a country can make, something widely recognised in Kazakhstan, with results of recent months proving that it’s already paying off.
