Jørgen Graabak, who has won several Olympic medals and has several World Cup victories on his list, knows how important sport is. Recently, he has read several cases in the newspapers and seen TV reports that high electricity prices, more expensive food and high inflation now means that some people cannot afford to let their children play sports. Graabak refers to stories about coaches who believe more children will quit this autumn, sports teams who have to offer different solutions for parents who cannot afford to pay and clubs who are considering closing halls because of the high electricity price. It has awakened the commitment of the combined runner. – It pains me when I hear about this. Sport is not for everyone, but it is an incredible shame if those who want to do not get the opportunity to take part in the fantastic opportunities that sport provides as a learning arena, says the 31-year-old to news. According to Graabak, the children learn to solve challenges and they get to experience both success and, not least, adversity. He believes this is incredibly valuable and means that children and young people learn to cope with things in many different areas for the rest of their lives. – For me, sport is primarily an educational institution. An arena for learning, where the most important goal should be to educate as many “good people” as possible. Everyone can’t become the best in the world, everyone can become good people, says Graabak. The Olympic champion thinks it hurts. He emphasizes that it does not only apply to sports, but also other activities such as music and theatre. In a case on the website of Team Norgeshus, he is now asking the politicians to earmark money to give everyone the same opportunity that he has been given. Graabak points, among other things, to the fact that the authority has earned much more from opening up the Norwegian electricity grid to foreign countries than they pay out in electricity subsidies. He believes that some of these billions can be earmarked and used so that all children and young people can afford to take part in activities. – For me, sport has been incredibly important and I think it hurts to hear that children who want to participate don’t get the opportunity, says Graabak. Monica Vogt in the BUA foundation believes that the drastic increase in the lending of equipment for sports and outdoor life with them has a clear connection with the fact that people have been given less money. Photo: Rahand Bazaz / news People say they are dependent on free loans Some of those who try to help families with poor means are the BUA Foundation. Here, people can borrow equipment for sports activities for free. But Monica Vogt, who heads the BUA foundation, confirms that more people than before are now struggling. – They say that outright. Had it not been for BUA, the children would not have been able to take part in various activities, says Vogt. She is the general manager of 216 BUA branches in 170 municipalities in Norway, which lend equipment for sports and outdoor activities free of charge. In the last twelve months alone there have been half a million loans and the number is only growing. – We think this has a clear connection with the fact that everything has become much more expensive, says Vogt. BUA is organized in various ways in the municipalities and Vogt is the head of the umbrella organization for the businesses. Since the start in 2016, the loans have doubled every single year and in several places they are now struggling with the fact that they simply have too little equipment to lend out and people have to wait in queues. The family’s finances affect the children’s activity The researchers are also concerned. Several surveys show that the parents’ finances influence the young people’s participation in sports. In a survey published last year, it appears that young people from families with good finances take part in organized activities more often than those who come from families with poor finances. This applies especially in sports. Children and young people in secondary and upper secondary schools in all the country’s municipalities participated in the survey. With an increasingly tough economy for many families, there is therefore every reason for concern, says researcher Daniel Arnesen. – The economic situation in the country was much better when this survey was carried out. Now we know that the situation is different. Several families have found it tough financially. This gives reason to believe that even more young people are now not allowed to participate in the sports activities they want, says Arnesen, who is a researcher at the Institute for Social Research. – Very seriously Sports president Berit Kjøll believes that our great role models getting involved can have a big impact on children and young people’s participation in sports and supports Graabak in much of what he says. She describes the situation as very serious and is concerned that several families are struggling to make ends meet. Sports president Berit Kjøll is asking politicians to strengthen public support schemes aimed at families who cannot afford to participate in leisure activities. Photo: Håkon Mosvold – In such a situation, there is a justified fear that parents will have to opt out of leisure activities for their children when they struggle to pay the fixed bills for living such as mortgages, rent, electricity, food and the like, explains Kjøll. She agrees with Graabak that the politicians must believe. But sport itself cannot just sit back and watch what happens either. She believes they must focus on membership fees, training fees and equipment that should not be too expensive. Want better electricity support for the sports teams Cost increases in general in society also affect the sports teams’ operating costs. This applies, among other things, to electricity, according to Kjøll. – Although sports have received public electricity subsidy schemes, many sports teams have multiplied their electricity costs this year. Therefore, we believe that the electricity subsidy scheme must be improved – precisely to avoid the additional cost being passed onto the members, says Kjøll, who not long ago wrote a column on this topic. In the proposal for the state budget that was submitted a short time ago, an extra 96 million is set aside to help strengthen the opportunities for children who grow up in families with low incomes. Here, among other things, more money is given to the BUA foundation, which lends out equipment for sports and outdoor life free of charge. Do you have tips or a story to share? We at news want to cover topics that deal with family finances and challenges linked to increased prices. If you are one of those who are now struggling to pay for their children’s activities or know someone who does – please get in touch.
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Olympic winner Jørgen Graabak finds that parents cannot afford to send their children to sports activities – news Trøndelag
