Bauski State Gymnasium wins €5,000 for sports gear in national lottery
Bauski State Gymnasium has won €5,000 through the Latvian Olympic Committee's "Sporto visi" lottery after the draw's Lucky Point landed in Bauska. The money will fund sports equipment used daily by all students.
On August 29, during the TV show "SuperBingo," it was revealed that the Lucky Point of the interactive lottery "Sporto visi" (Everyone Plays Sports) had landed in Bauska. Under the lottery's rules, the €5,000 prize for improving school sports facilities goes to the school geographically closest to that point which participates in the Latvian Olympic Committee's (LOK) "Sporto visa klase" project. This time the winner was Bauski State Gymnasium, receiving such funding for the first time.
School director Inita Nagņibeda said that together with physical education teachers and the facilities manager, the school has already assessed its needs and agreed on how to spend the prize. A contract with LOK will now be prepared, after which the equipment can be purchased once legal formalities and funding transfer are complete. Planned purchases include a streetball hoop, metal boules sets, badminton sets with rackets and shuttlecocks, basketball and football balls, and floorball sticks.
Priority given to everyday equipment
The list also includes balance beams with support steps, exercise balls, a parachute game, cone sets, and a set of ergonomic scooters. Although the school also needs football goals for its outdoor field, priority was given to equipment usable in daily physical education classes by a larger number of students, since most lessons take place indoors during the school year. The director emphasized that the new equipment will be available to all students, not only those in the special sports project.
Last September, a similar €5,000 award went to Bauska Secondary School No. 2. Latvijas Loto representative Elīna Asare explained that a school can receive the funding only once per season but can compete again in the following season if it remains part of the "Sporto visa klase" project. Some schools in Latvia have already received the award four or five times.
The current, fifth season of "Sporto visi" is nearing its end, with a new season starting October 3; the first winning school of the new season will be announced October 10. The weekly funding is made possible by residents who buy Sports Lottery tickets.
