Cyprus is rallying behind its 15 Olympians, with Minister of Education, Sports, and Youth Athina Michailidou affirming the government’s duty to provide financial support to athletes.
“It is the state’s duty to stand by our athletes,” she explained. “We feel so much pride that a small country will be in Paris.”
Support for Olympic athletes comes at all levels – through financial aid, training facilities, and school programs to develop young athletes.
For the upcoming Games, however, the minister emphasised the need for funding.
“The most important thing, we have to be honest, is the increase in funding and resources” she stated.
In response, the Cyprus government has boosted its monetary assistance for athletes in 2024. “We have increased our financial aid,” Michailidou reported, adding that this decision was made only “recently.”
Plans also include upgrading some of the country’s sports venues, in order to help future Olympians prepare.
“The facilities, the infrastructure, are very important for us,” reported the minister. She added that, “it is our aim to have modern sports venues.”
Beyond their athletic careers, Olympians also require support when leaving athletics and entering the professional world. “The transition from their competitive career to another area is an issue for our athletes both psychologically and above all materially,” Michailidou stated.
Asked how the government can ease this transition, the minister said that they are creating programs to assist athletes with university placements and job searches. Part of this effort is a seminar series “that will facilitate this transition to the labour market.”
Nearing the end of the interview, conversation turned to Michailidou’s own trip to Paris in the upcoming days. There, she will offer moral support.
“I want to encourage them up close,” she said.
No matter the results, the minister assured that “we are already very proud just by their participation.”
Now, her only wish is that the 15 Olympians and three Paralympians representing Cyprus “do their best and enjoy this participation.
“Allow me to individually wish each and every one of our athletes success.”
