Cricket Included in List of Officially Recognised Sports in Russia

Good news for cricket fans around the world as Russia has recognized cricket as an official sport in the country. Back in July 2019, the Russian sports ministry had released a list of registered sports which included the likes of sports yoga, footgolf, model plane flying but had refused to recognize cricket as a sport. However, almost a year later, the ministry have changed their stance on the decision, meaning cricket will now be an eligible sport in the country. Cricket is Not a Sport, Says Russia; Gets Roasted by Die-Hard Indian Cricket Fans on Twitter.

'This is an incredible milestone in the history of cricket in Russia,' Ashwani Chopra, President of Cricket Russia, told the European Cricket Network. ‘The decision will further boost our efforts to raise the profile of cricket in Russia.’ He added. ‘It was bigger news for the media when cricket was not recognised as a sport in Russia, but now all our hard work has finally been rewarded,’ Chopra continued.

Cricket Russia are one of the founding members of the European Cricket League tournament and St. Petersburg Lions, impressed by taking the first-ever ECL competition which was held in 2019 in Spain. Moscow Foxes were set to represent the country in ECL20, scheduled from May 31 to June 7, 2020. But the tournament was suspended due to the coronavirus pandemic.

ECL Founder Daniel Weston also expressed his delight on this decision saying ‘From knowing Ashwani and many of the people and players involved with Cricket Russia, this is a landmark moment in their pioneering efforts to push the game forward. In years to come, I would like to think that more and more good news is going to come from Cricket in Russia and the game won’t look back from here’

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 01, 2020 05:11 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).