Sport ministry reveals space designated for launching Museum of Georgian Sport

The Ministry of Culture, Sport and Youth of Georgia has revealed a brand-new space designated to house the upcoming Museum of Georgian Sport, with minister Thea Tsulukiani unveiling the location selected for displaying historical exhibits in capital Tbilisi on Wednesday.

A 900-square-metre zone boasting an exposition area, repository and office spaces in Dighomi district of the capital city has been picked for the museum after a ministry subsidiary handed it over for the project for free, the ministry revealed.

Located as part of the extended premises of the Olympic Pool in the district, the space will mark a major departure for the museum, the exhibits of which have been locked away in crates for years due to unavailability of space for displaying them.

Until 2018, when the sport ministry joined the Georgian National Museum network, the items - illustrating the history and achievements of Georgian athletes across decades - had been on display in a modest 50-square-metre area in the entrance to the ministry building.

Minister Tsulukiani said the exhibits had been under proper care "to the credit of the staff" of the sport museum, however she also pointed out the museum so far "only exist[ed] on paper in practice", as its collections could not be displayed to the public.

Georgian sport "deserves to have the silverware, prizes and other exhibits illustrating its brilliant victories available to viewers, sport fans and athletes themselves", she added, revealing the intention was to open the doors of the museum at the new space starting in the summer.

Georgia's nine-time Summer Olympic Games participant and three-time Olympic medal winner Nino Salukvadze was named director of the museum back in September.