• Start date:  23.10.2022
• End date:  23.10.2022
• RU:  Диалог должен продолжаться! Спортивный фестиваль День тенниса (Tennis Day)
• Status: Completed

The Russian-Austrian Public Forum Sochi Dialogue organised a number of events to coincide with National Austrian Day (26 October). Among them was a big sports event called Tennis Day at the Multisport sports club of the Luzhniki Olympic Complex. During the whole day of October, 23 there were trainings, games and competitions in tennis, squash and table tennis taking place in the indoor courts of the complex. Leading coaches held master-classes for beginners and advanced players. The programme also included paired tournaments with valuable prizes from the partners.

The event was opened by the Director of the Russian-Austrian Public Forum Sochi Dialogue Maria Matveeva; master of sports in table tennis, Honoured Coach of Russia and Honoured Worker of Physical Culture and Sport of the Russian Federation Victor Batov; Executive Director of Austrian Friendship Society Elena Skvortsova and the winner of the FOTORUAT 2021 competition, Alexander Brown, who came from Austria especially for the event. In welcoming speech, Forum Director Maria Matveeva noted the importance of maintaining civil dialogue: «We talk a lot about trust in the Sochi Dialogue; it is especially important these days that people, not parties in relations, listen to and hear each other, meet and exchange views. Events such as today's festival once again emphasise that, despite the difficult geopolitical situation, the public of our countries is finding ways to interact. And we, the Sochi Dialogue, are simply helping them to do this».

The general partner of the event is the Austrian cochlear implant manufacturer MED-EL. The company is a leading supplier of hearing implants worldwide and a long-standing partner of the Sochi Dialogue.

In Russia, the issue of support for children with hearing problems and their post-operative rehabilitation has been solved at a high level. Implanted children find themselves in professional sports careers, playing lawn and table tennis and squash. Guests from the Russian and Austrian side came to support the players: representatives of Austrian business in Russia and the Austrian Embassy in Russia.

In 2022, it was decided to hold the sports festival together with the opening of an exhibition of the winners of the photo competition FOTORUAT-2021 of the Austrian Friendship Society. In 2021, the competition was held for the third time and attracted more than 500 young people from Russia and Austria, professional photographers and talented amateurs, and was dedicated to the theme «Visually about the present». The work of the participants raised issues of importance to both Russian and Austrian society.

Photographs of the young artists were displayed in the non-game areas of the Festival, providing an awareness of the initiative to a wide range of people. Alexander Braun (Austria), the winner of last year's competition, was present at the opening and celebration. This was his first visit to Russia.