The debate on Yury Vardanyan’s famous comment about Armenia’s participation in the London Olympic Games changed its spectrum towards people and political groups, while it could be more important for Armenia.
The matter is that sport is the sector that has become one of the axis spheres of competition between countries. For instance, the USA and China are competing now in London and this sport competition is obviously not official, but, anyhow, it expresses the geopolitical ambitions of these countries.
Sport has become the indicator of state efficiency and in that sense the field needs to be modernized in Armenia as well and there needs to be a debate on this subject. The quality of directing sport, the structure, and methodology must undergo a serious review. Actually, there is no sport in Armenia, there are just several millionaires who sponsor this or that sport according to their preference. The experience shows that this does not bring to the development of any sport. There may be separate episodes of success, but there is no sport system, school and, what is more important, no sports culture.
This is a serious problem and needs discussion. But there are no public discussions on these subjects in Armenia, because sport is beyond discussions. These several millionaires have shut everybody’s mouths, and first of all of the specialists of this sphere by money or by their guardians. Very few people are left ready to speak up and carry serious professional discussion about problems of sport world. In other words, Armenian sport is captured by its sponsors that threaten either to punish physically those who dare to criticize their actions or simply not to sponsor that sport any more.
In other words Armenian sport community has become the victim of ambitious blackmail of Armenian oligarchy. And actually irrespective of the fact with what wits they turn to blackmail, or whether they realize that it is blackmail or not, the fact is that everything they do proves to be in vain.
The concept “sport world” in Armenia has violated its orbit, has violated the orbit of universal development of sport and if there are no public discussions, no criticism, no protests, no remarks, the Armenian sport world will in no way be the part of state competitiveness, and will gradually become a burden both for the country and for the society with its sponsors because the majority of them make their being sport sponsors a tool to manipulate the society.
