Максим Рыженков. Фото: @olympicteamby
Belarusian Foreign Minister Maksim Ryzhankou received a souvenir award from Viktar Lukashenka. The award is the medal “For Outstanding Merit,” established by the National Olympic Committee of Belarus. Ryzhankou received it as chairman of the Belarusian Basketball Federation, which he has led since 2014.
President of the National Olympic Committee Viktar Lukashenka emphasized that the medal “was awarded for outstanding merit in the development of the Olympic movement, mass sports and elite sports. During the years of Maksim Ryzhankou’s leadership, the federation made significant progress in the development of Belarusian basketball, and its work acquired a systemic character: increasing attention is being paid to working with the younger generation, as well as to the development of referees and coaching training. Cooperation with partners in the development of sports infrastructure and the promotion of 3×3 basketball to the level of an Olympic discipline has also been established,” BelTA reports.
“With the participation of the federation’s leadership, large-scale projects were implemented that allowed our country to host the largest international tournaments at a high organizational level.
High professionalism and strategic vision contributed to the significant promotion of Olympic values and the strengthening of the position of national sport in the international arena. At the XXI Congress of the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) in 2019, the Belarusian federation was among the best, receiving an award for third place for demonstrating significant progress in the development of women’s teams in 2017–2019,” Viktar Lukashenka noted.
It should be recalled that at the end of February it became known that Ryzhankou would be removed from the leadership of the Basketball Federation. Former handball player and current head of the Belarusian Tennis Federation Siarhei Rutenka has already been nominated as a candidate for the position of the federation’s head.