Will Qatar invest in Serbia's sports industry? - Construction of Center for Sports Medicine, Psychology and Analytics in Kosutnjak in the pipeline

(future look of the Center for Sports Medicine, Psychology and Analytics)

If all requirements are met, construction of a unique center for sports medicine, psychology and analytics could commence in Belgrade as early as next year. This is a project of the Republic Sports Institute which plans to have this facility built within its business complex in Kosutnjak.

Construction of a new center for sports medicine may also be carried out as a joint project of aforementioned institute and the orthopedic and sports medicine clinic Aspetar from Qatar. Namely, a delegation of this clinic, led by Director Hakim Chalabi, visited the Republic Sports Institute last Wednesday (12 June 2013) to talk about plans for the establishment of professional and scientific cooperation. Their support should include a financial aid for the extension and reconstruction of the current Center for Sports Mobility and Analytics. As it was announced at a press conference, an agreement on the cooperation between these two institutions is expected to be signed as early as this September.

- Once we reach a final agreement on cooperation with the Aspetar clinic, we will also talk about support they could provide us in the construction of the new Center for Sports Medicine, Psychology and Analytics - Director of the Institute of Sports and Sports Medicine of the Republic of Serbia Jasminko Pozderac told eKapija.

- There is also a possibility of building this facility as a public-private partnership project, but the situation is difficult, and we should not lie to ourselves that the implementation of this project could kick off in the near future.

According to our interlocutor, the idea to build a new center for sports medicine is about three years old, which is how long it`s been since designs for the future center were completed. However, in order to begin project implementation and secure the required funding, it is necessary that the City first adopts the Master Plan for Kosutnjak.

- Designs are ready, but it should take at least one more year to begin project implementation - Pozderac stressed.

- Adoption of the Master Plan for Kosutnjak has been awaited for eighteen years and prevented us from getting a building permit for the new facility. The moment the Master Plan is adopted, and I hope this could happen next year, we will become serious in our intention to obtain location and building permits, secure funds, and build a facility that is necessary for the sports industry in Serbia at this moment.

According to Pozderac, the future center would be a place where athletes would undergo medical, psychological and mobility testing. However, it would not be intended exclusively for professional athletes in Serbia.

- First of all, we want to become a leader in the region. The future center would be placed at the disposal of not only professional athletes, but also recreational athletes, students, children and seniors as we must take care of everybody equally.

EUR 1 million required

The new sports medicine facility would be built in the location of the existing Center for Sports Mobility and Analytics that is situated next to the entrance to the administration building of the Republic Sports Institute in Kosutnjak. However, the new facility would be built from scratch, given that the existing building cannot undergo reconstruction as it was built in the 1970s on sand foundations.

According to designs, the new four-floor facility would span about 2,100 square meters. The ground floor would feature rooms for physical medicine and rehabilitation, functional diagnostics equipment would be situated on the first floor, the second floor would be reserved for infirmaries, whereas a room for mobility testing would occupy the entire attic.

It would take about one year to build such facility in which about EUR 1 million would need to be invested.

Aspetar supports the best

The Aspetar clinic plans to support only three institutes in Europe: France's INSEP, Italy's CONI, and Serbia's Institute of Sports and Sports Medicine.

As Pozderac said, the details of cooperation between the Qatar-based clinic and the Serbian Sports Institute are yet to be determined, but it will mainly focus on education. Employees of the Sports Institute of the Republic of Serbia would finally get a chance to visit the world's most prominent congresses of sports medicine. The Institute would join an alliance of the most serious sports institutes in the world, and also win an opportunity to organize one such large congress itself. In addition, cooperation would also be based on the exchange of students and employees.

State Secretary in the Ministry of Youth and Sports Predrag Perunicic said that such cooperation would be one of the most valuable things the sports industry could have as far as education was concerned, adding that his ministry would provide comprehensive support to the cooperation between the two institutions.

Cooperation between the Sports Institute of the Republic of Serbia and the Aspetar clinic is a result of an initiative by Professor Dr. Nebojsa Popovic, a former celebrated member of the national handball team, who is today a top surgeon, university professor, and the education program coordinator at the Aspetar clinic.

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