The unveiling took place on October 6, with the sports center strategically situated on the eco-esplanade of the Noxa River - a green oasis that bridges the newly developed areas of Kazan. The sports center’s design marries environmental stewardship with human engagement. A host of young handball enthusiasts kicked off the festivities with a coaching session, presided over by the handball savant Dmitry Bocharnikov, Sports Director of the Russian Handball Federation (RHF) and internationally acclaimed Master of Sports. Bocharnikov was joined by players from the Zilant handball club. Meanwhile, the basketball court hosted a master class, led by the athletes from the UNICS Kazan basketball club.
Offering three courts for various sports activities and four stands for spectators, the center's state-of-the-art infrastructure includes professional handball goals, anti-vandal basketball stands, curtain netting separating the handball and the basketball areas, and an innovative acrylic flooring, specialized for various athletic disciplines.
“The support for domestic handball remains at the heart of Delo Group's social agenda”, explained Maria Kobzeva, the Head of Public Relations for Delo Group. “For several years, the Group has been sponsoring the Federation and the largest handball clubs in the country. In 2022, under the joint supervision of Sergey Shishkaryov, Chairman of Delo Group's Board of Directors, Head of the Russian Handball Federation, and Rustam Minnikhanov, President of the Republic of Tatarstan, Kazan's Zilant handball club was resuscitated to its former glory. It is gratifying that this year, together with our partners from SIBUR, we have created a multi–sports complex that will make sport more accessible to residents of one of the key regions of our operations," added Kobzeva.
Dmitry Bocharnikov underscored the significant role that each new sports facility plays in the proliferation of handball across the nation, classifying Tatarstan as one of Russia's premier sports hubs. He expressed joy at the resurfacing of Kazan’s professional men’s sports club, which has now emerged as a potent challenger within the Super League ranks. A high expectation lies on this state-of-art handball and basketball arena to be fertile grounds for talents who will soon fortify the ranks of both Zilant and the national team.
SIBUR expertly illustrated its multi-faceted approach to societal growth through the lens of its basketball development program, from projects aimed at developing young athletes and improving coaching skills to developing sports infrastructure, as explained by Sergey Bykov, the company's Senior Manager for Investment Support and Social Policy, and Honored Master of Sports of the Russian Federation. He highlighted the company's core tenets, centered on partnership and stakeholder engagement, and attributed the successful launch of the sports center in Kazan to concerted cooperation with Delo Group, Splat and the Kazan city authorities.
Delo Group takes pride in harnessing its wide array of assets across Russia to spearhead development in the regions of their operational presence. Previous initiatives launched by Sergey Shishkaryov include funding the construction of a sports field in Zabaikalsk, the location of the largest container terminal on the Russia-China border. The company has also invested in DELO SPORT, a state-of-the-art sports complex in Abrau-Durso, which hosts training camps for handball and football clubs. This complex is also the home ground for the Novorossiysk women's handball club Chernomorochka ready to take on rivals in the OLIMPBET Super League. < Back to list