The past, present and future of Russian sport was presented to schoolchildren by Nikolai Valuev at the RUSSIA EXPO

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On April 16, the "Sport for Everyone" Pavilion of the Russian Ministry of Sport at the International RUSSIA EXPO featured an author's tour by Nikolai Valuev, multiple world boxing champion and State Duma deputy. The speaker told schoolchildren about the FMBA Sports Medicine Center, the Games of the Future, the GTO system and other achievements of national sports. The educational event was part of the "Excursion with Knowledge" program developed by the Russian Society "Knowledge" for the International RUSSIA EXPO.

Nikolai Valuev is a legend of national and world sports. One of his high-profile victories is the title of world heavyweight champion according to the World Boxing Association. Today Nikolai Valuev is engaged in state, public and creative activities, founded several professional boxing schools, opened the Charitable Foundation for the development of children's and youth sports. At the "Excursion with Knowledge" the talented boxer told the schoolchildren about Russian sport, shared his personal experience and answered the children's questions. One of the questions was about why Nikolai Valuev chose boxing.

"Boxing is a natural sport. After all, man is an upright creature, and the first thing that, apparently, he came up with in terms of defense or offense is the blows of hands and feet. Then in the course of his development, man perfected techniques of self-defense and attack. But it is boxing that has the most ancient nature, — commented Nikolai Valuev. — In order to choose a sport that interests you, you need to try, try and try again its different types: game, water, any kind".

The famous athlete began his tour at the stand dedicated to the Sports Medicine Center of the Federal Medical and Biological Agency of Russia. Here the speaker told about the work of the Center and annual examinations of professional athletes. The children learned about the devices of medical and psychological testing, which scientifically represent the concepts of "moral preparation", "fortitude", "stamina" and "fighting spirit". They studied the starting examination by bioelectrical impedance analysis method, pressure therapy apparatus, as well as portable medical complexes — they are used in stadiums, sports centers, ice rinks and are created to check the state of health of an athlete before the start or to provide them with the necessary assistance at any moment of competition.

"Sports medicine does not only monitor the athlete's condition when they are tired or need rehabilitation. The most important thing is to initially determine the physical capabilities of the athlete, to identify their diseases, because the human characteristics inherent by nature do not suit every sport. A human being is a complex biological organism that requires fine-tuning. It is sports medicine that helps to achieve high results," explained Nikolai Valuev.

The next point of the tour was the zone dedicated to the national sports project - the GTO system created in 1931. The Russian boxer said that nowadays the GTO complex consists of 18 stages, and the standards, which are divided into three levels of complexity, can be passed by people from six to 70 years old, as well as by older people. With the support of Nikolai Valuev, the participants tried their strength in pull-ups, long jumps and other standards.

Another interesting point of the excursion was the stand "Sports Museum". The children saw unique exhibits: a diploma of the winner of the first Spartakiade in 1928, a ticket from the football match "Chelsea - Dynamo" in 1945, a certificate of honor to goalkeeper Lev Yashin for the victory at the Olympics-1956, Olympic torches of the Games of 1980 and 2014, Olympic medals of different years and many other items.

"The Sports Museum in Moscow is replenished with new exhibits almost every month - they are donated by many famous athletes. For example, VDNH displays famous Olympic torches, including the torch of the Winter Olympic Games in Sochi. On the eve of the Olympics, a marathon was held in all regions of our country: veterans of sports, active athletes, who in different years glorified the Soviet Union and Russia, had the honor to run a certain distance with this torch. Everyone had his own torch, all of them were kept as a memento by the athletes. The torch I ran with is a very dear and memorable gift for me from my native country," said Nikolai Valuev.

Boys and girls visited the stands "Sport for Everyone - World of Entertainment" and "Games of the Future". Here Nikolai Valuev and the kids discussed the recent championship of the same name in Kazan, phygital sport and its prospects. The experienced athlete drew attention to the fact that in the disciplines of phygital-sport participants face a difficult but even more interesting task — to show their skills in both virtual and real spaces.

At the end of the excursion Nikolai Valuev held a thematic quiz for the children — schoolchildren answered five questions about sports, and the winners received memorable prizes.

This day there was also an excursion along the Alley of Glory, created by the "Knowledge" Society with the support of the Ministry of Sport of the Russian Federation in honor of the achievements of our compatriots in the world sports arena in various sports. Darya Tarasova, two-time world champion, multiple European champion, winner of the 2008 Olympic Wushu demonstration tournament in Beijing, acted as a guide.

The educational program "Excursion with Knowledge" is held within the framework of the International RUSSIA EXPO in Moscow. Every month more than 20 exclusive author's excursions are organized, led by outstanding lecturers of the Russian Society "Knowledge": scientists, sportsmen, public and state figures, masters of culture and art. The route of each excursion is unique, interconnected with the speaker's sphere of activity and reflects their view on the achievements of modern Russia. The participants of the excursions can not only listen, but also ask questions in order to understand the topic as thoroughly as possible.

In addition, audio-guide tours, prepared by the "Knowledge" Society in partnership with the "More Than a Trip" program, are available for an independent educational walk around the Exposition. And for guests with children there are family author's tours of the Russian Society "Knowledge" designed in partnership with the "Soyuzmultfilm" movie studio.