International Children’s Games held in Ufa
News from projects and regions
On July 9–14, the International Children's Games were held in the capital of Bashkortostan, bringing together over 1,500 athletes, coaches and guests from 29 countries.
The Ufa-Gazprom team delivered confident wins in 9 different sports during the international competition. Almost a fifth of the Ufa team was composed of children representing Gazprom Transgaz Ufa in the Company's Winter and Summer Spartakiada Games. For instance, Viktoria Lisitskaya won two gold medals in 50-meter and 100-meter breaststroke swimming, and also took silver in the relay. Both girls' and boys' teams won gold in youth beach volleyball. Young athlete Nikolay Kireev earned silver and bronze medals in individual and team fencing, respectively.
Officials of Games and representatives of Ufa administration and Gazprom Transgaz Ufa pictured with winners
On July 13, a Football for Friendship match within Gazprom's social program of the same name was played at the stadium of the Ufa Football Club for the first time in the history of the International Children's Games. Young athletes had been assisted in their training by Alexey Smertin, former captain of the Russian national football team. Once again, football united boys and girls from all over the world, proving that this game knows no barriers.
Football for Friendship bracelet given to Director General of Gazprom Transgaz Ufa as souvenir of match
Ufa held the closing ceremony of the 53rd International Children's Summer Games, passing the baton to the Hungarian city of Kecskemet, which will host the competition in 2020.
Background
Gazprom Transgaz Ufa is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Gazprom. It performs gas transmission within the Republic of Bashkortostan.
The company operates some 5,000 kilometers of gas trunklines.
Gazprom Transgaz Ufa's 16 branches include 9 gas pipeline operation centers, 12 compressor workshops, 82 gas compressor units, and 146 gas distribution stations.
An environmental management system certified to ISO 14001:2015 is adopted at the company. Gazprom Transgaz Ufa has about 5,000 employees and is headquartered in Ufa.
The Football for Friendship (F4F) international children's social program has been implemented by Gazprom since 2013. Girls and boys of 12 years old, including those with disabilities, take part in the program as Young Footballers and Young Journalists. Young Footballers representing various countries and cultures unite into Friendship Teams to play in the F4F International Championship. Young Journalists work in the International Children's Press Center to cover F4F events. This way, children learn to speak the language of friendship and, what is more, to tell what the world would look like without war and discrimination.
All F4F participants are assigned the status of Young Ambassadors, and after returning home, they continue to share their unique F4F experiences and promote universal human values: friendship, equality, fairness, health, peace, devotion, victory, traditions, and honor. The F4F program is supported by UEFA, FIFA, the International Olympic Committee, football federations and the world's leading football clubs, international charitable foundations, famous athletes, politicians, and cultural figures. The project has received many international and Russian awards in the areas of social responsibility, sports, and communications. In the course of the past 7 seasons, F4F encompassed 211 countries and regions, brought together more than 6,000 participants, and gained over 5 million supporters. In 2019, F4F set a world record and earned a GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS® certificate for the most multinational football training session in history.