OREANDA-NEWS. Ingosstrakh Insurance Company is implementing a social project aimed at the development of a barrier-free environment for people with disabilities. As a part of the project, specialized sports facilities will be constructed before the end of this year in 14 Russian cities, which will be open for everyone, including people with disabilities.

The outdoor sports grounds are equipped with exercise machines that can be used to provide workout for all major muscle groups. The design of the exercisers makes them also suitable for people with disabilities, in particular, with musculoskeletal disorders.

"This project is aimed primarily at the establishment of an accessible environment for people with disabilities and is intended to promote Paralympic and adaptive sports in Russia," Mikhail Volkov, CEO of Ingosstrakh Insurance Company, comments. "We were all pleasantly surprised and inspired by the brilliant victories of our Paralympic athletes. The public awareness of the problems of people with disabilities grew due to the 11th Paralympic Winter Games 2014 in Sochi, and we would really like to see this awareness develop into practical initiatives and purposeful activity. We hope that all those who are not indifferent to the problem will join us."

According to Mikhail Volkov, before the end of this year, the sports grounds sponsored by Ingosstrakh Insurance Company will be opened in Yekaterinburg, Beloretsk, Vladivostok, Omsk, St. Petersburg, Moscow, Tver, Saratov, Sochi, Perm, Astrakhan, Nizhny Novgorod, Tyumen. "We hope that the new sports grounds will become popular among the residents, promote a healthy lifestyle, physical exercise and sport, contribute to the development of barrier-free environment in the Russian cities," he said.

The project of sports grounds construction was launched during the Torch Relay of the 11th Paralympic Winter Games 2014 in Sochi, when Ingosstrakh Insurance Company was the Presenting Partner of the Relay. The initiative is being implemented within the framework of the company's social activities. Ingosstrakh Insurance Company was one of the first businesses to focus on the problems of athletes with disabilities. The company also provided assistance to "All-Russian Federation of Sports for Persons with Musculoskeletal Disorders".

As a Partner and Official Insurer of the Paralympic Winter Games in Sochi, Ingosstrakh Insurance Company initiated construction of sports grounds in several Russian cities. The first sports ground where adaptive sports can be practiced was opened by the Company in Krasnodar on March 4, 2014.