„Sports must be taken out of political coloration. Its flag is only white, green, red, said the chairman of the Bulgarian Taekwondo Federation (BFT) Slavi Binev in the program "On Focus". on Nova TV. “During socialism, combat sports were banned. The then regime saw them as a threat," he emphasized.
„Sports is a panacea that the whole society needs right now to be able to heal itself from the defects that we all see. Sports is what can save our children from the street and everything else, Binev said.
„Sport is a huge industry worldwide, it is diplomacy. Sport is discipline, respect and esteem, sport is education, all things that are lacking in society at the moment,” emphasized the chairman of the Bulgarian Taekwondo Federation.
He categorically denied that athletes became criminal types in the 1990s. “There is no such thing. True athletes fell prey to those who preyed on them and exploited their brute strength. Because in a society where there are no rules, you go through these things," Binev added.
„If we do not have a strategy for sports, we will fail our children. "I try to avoid it at all costs," he said. According to him, parents send their children to sports to learn discipline, not to win medals.
„In Bulgaria, the Ministry of Youth and Sports is a political deal. If you really want something to happen, the minister must be a person from the sports family. When you want change, you have to start from yourself. Many times the foundation of Taekwondo was missed. I make coaches and athletes go back to the basics, he pointed out.
Binev called for a round table where politicians and institutions can sit down and talk about strategy in sports.