Czech Government Scraps Funding for Children's Sports Olympics

The Czech government has cancelled the annual subsidy of roughly 20 million koruna for the Olympics of Children and Youth — a competition held since 2003, rotating between different regions of the country and aimed at schoolchildren aged 12 to 16. The decision has sparked outrage among regional governors and organisers, who fear the tournament's future is now at risk without state support.

“This is one of the most important events in Czech children's and youth sport. A significant share of the budget comes from partners, which isn't easy to secure for a youth event. If the government doesn't back the host region in the coming years either, the entire Olympics could be in jeopardy,” said Filip Šuman, head of the Olympics at the Czech Olympic Committee.

Education Minister Robert Plaga (ANO) explains the cut by arguing that the state subsidy was never properly justified within the system. According to him, the Ministry of Education shouldn't be funding a project run by the regions and the Olympic Committee that focuses on competitions between sports clubs rather than school teams.

Prague Already Lost Out

Back in June this year, Prague — which hosted the summer games — went without the subsidy. Opposition politicians suggested this could look like a deliberate move by the Babiš government against the wealthy capital, which holds tens of billions of koruna in its accounts and is led by Mayor Bohuslav Svoboda from the rival ODS party.

Other governors, however, fear the entire future of the tournament is at stake, since the cabinet has no plans to allocate the subsidy in the years ahead either. In January 2027, the Plzeň Region will host the winter edition of the Olympics, and in 2028 the Zlín Region will host the summer edition. Both regions are currently governed by leaders from the ruling ANO movement.

What Else Has Been Taken from the Regions

According to the Association of Regions, the government has also: cancelled the subsidy for repairing category II and III roads (around 4 billion koruna a year), introduced a 21% VAT on compensation payments to public transport operators (11 billion koruna a year), and raised wages for medical staff, social workers, culture-sector employees and civil servants without providing the regions with additional funds to cover the increase.

Radim Holiš (ANO), head of the Association of Regions and governor of the Zlín Region, sent a letter to Prime Minister Andrej Babiš asking for a long-term, systemic solution for funding the children's Olympics. Instead of the prime minister, three other cabinet members responded: Sports Minister Boris Šťastný, Environment Minister Igor Červený (both from the Motorists party), and Regional Development Minister Zuzana Mrázová (ANO).

“A Real Disgrace for the Government”

Central Bohemian Region governor Petra Pecková (STAN) also sharply criticised the decision. She noted that sports funding isn't the largest item in regional budgets, but symbolically the decision highlights the gap between the government's rhetoric and its actual actions.

“Failing to support the Olympics of Children and Youth is a real disgrace for this government. We're told children don't move enough and suffer from obesity, the government has a new sports minister, yet the only measure he's taken is putting up signs by lifts urging people to take the stairs,” Pecková fumed.

According to Filip Šuman, head of the Olympics, the 20 million koruna from the state was a key item in the tournament's overall budget. The host region contributes another 15–20 million, the Olympic Committee adds 14 million, and each participating region chips in three million koruna.

Sports Minister Boris Šťastný counters that, under the current law on sports support, direct funding can only go to sports organisations, not to regions or municipalities, and that the previous support was merely a leftover from the Ministry of Education's old system. He claims, however, that he is pushing for a change in legislation that would in future allow the children's Olympics to be funded through the National Sports Agency.

Source: seznamzpravy.cz