KAZAN, February 21. /TASS/. Young people are very interested in phygital games and the ‘Games of the Future’ competition, Russian Minister of Sport Oleg Matitsyn told reporters.

"First of all, I am glad that, thanks to the president’s decision, the work of the organizational committee, federal and regional teams, this project has gotten off the ground and has some global energy behind it," Matitsyn said. "Over 60 countries support this movement; a phygital sports federation has been established in our country, complete with regional federations; a trial competition took place last year, and now we are looking forward to the opening ceremony. As you know, we thank the guests and friends from countries that accepted our invitation and came; this gives us confidence that the ‘Games of the Future’ has a future."

"The foundation in Russia has been laid; we see how high the interest is, among young people, first and foremost. The interest is not only in the media, we see interest at the venues, too. We had an opportunity to attend trial events, to meet and talk to the participants there. Everyone is psyched, filled with joy and excitement, they feel they are in on the ground floor of this project. So, we have no doubt that the competition will be spectacular, it will draw both athletes and spectators. Of course, we hope that the media, TV and social networks will paint the event in a good light," he added.