The State Research Programme “Sports” (SRP “Sports”) marks an important turning point in the development of Latvia’s sports sector – it positions sport as a knowledge-based part of public health, education and national development policy. The knowledge gained through the programme helps us better understand how a physically active and healthy person develops and what decisions are needed to ensure that the sports environment is safe, supportive of development and focused on the long term.
This approach is particularly important in children’s and youth sport, as movement habits, health and attitudes towards sport are formed at an early age. They begin with opportunities to be physically active in physical education classes, a high-quality and safe training environment, a professional coach, and adults who are able to prioritise a child’s long-term development over short-term results.
Science for Sports Policy
The professional experience accumulated in Latvia’s sports sector provides an important foundation for the development of children and young people both in sport and in life. The SRP “Sports” project “Innovations, Methodologies and Recommendations for the Development and Governance of the Sports Sector in Latvia” (IMRSportsLV), implemented by Rīga Stradiņš University (RSU) together with the University of Latvia and Riga Technical University, significantly complements this experience with systematic data and evidence-based findings that can be applied directly in practice – in grassroots sport, adapted sport, children’s and youth sport, as well as high-performance sport.
The programme already provides the sports sector with important data on children’s physical development, exercise tolerance, recommended nutrition, injury risks and prevention, as well as mental health. It also offers knowledge about how children mature, how their developmental rates differ, and why one young person may reach their potential at the age of 16, while another may do so only at 20.
The SRP “Sports” is an important step towards good governance and evidence-based sports policy, as its results help support long-term decision-making and translate scientific findings into practical recommendations. RSU plays a central role in this process by coordinating the work of project partners, maintaining dialogue with sports organisations and policymakers, and ensuring that the knowledge generated through the programme reaches coaches, teachers, physicians, rehabilitation professionals and sports specialists. This is how science becomes a practical tool for everyday work in sports halls, on playing fields, in schools and in healthcare institutions.
What Needs to Change in Youth Sport?
At the end of June, RSU supported and took part in the Latvian Youth Olympiad in Valmiera, organised by the Latvian Olympic Committee and revived after a six-year break. We saw children and young people competing in almost 30 sports. More than 3,500 participants from across Latvia took part – young athletes enjoying being together and the joy of sport.
As I mentioned earlier, sport should begin in childhood and initially become a source of enjoyment. If we do not exercise and do not learn to be physically active from an early age, it is highly likely that, as a society, we will not remain physically active in old age either. Unfortunately, the statistics in Latvia are concerning – 33% of the population do not participate in sport, and on average people live 52 years in good health. By investing in children’s and youth sport, we promote the physical and mental health of young people, helping to ensure that they grow into healthy members of society rather than becoming a burden on human resources – people who require treatment, are unable to work and cause losses for employers.
During discussions at the Olympiad, several representatives of the sports sector and public administration identified very clearly what needs to change in youth sport – a larger budget allocated to health (and, I would add, to sport as well), regular grassroots sporting events, support for parents, support for extracurricular sports education and activities, and support for sports science and health literacy.
Our researchers and experts are convinced, and international experience confirms, that early specialisation benefits neither health nor sporting performance. If only one aspect of youth sport were to be changed, this would be it.
How Will We Know We Have Achieved the Goal?
Latvia’s goal is a young person who has learned to be active and physically engaged, to take care of their health, to cooperate within a team and, no less importantly, within the family. If a child does not receive the message at home that physical activity is valuable, then we need to consider what we as a society as a whole can do to help. The state alone cannot establish this habit. Our researchers and academic staff also have an important role to play, as they can help identify the right arguments to ensure that positive change takes place at every level.
Researchers in the IMRSportsLV project are working to translate the project results into evidence-based recommendations and to turn them into tangible impact on society – by implementing them in the sports sector, using them in further research, scientific publications and conferences, and integrating them into the study process.
Some young people will become elite athletes. Others will become physically active doctors, teachers, entrepreneurs, parents and members of society.
At RSU, we believe that the future of sport in Latvia begins with knowledge. With data that help identify risks at an early stage. With educated coaches who see not only results and medals, but also the child’s well-being. With parents who provide support rather than pursue their own ambitions. And with policies that treat a physically active and healthy society as a serious goal and invest in achieving it.
