{"id":79353,"date":"2026-01-13T11:13:53","date_gmt":"2026-01-13T11:13:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kosovapress.com\/eng\/admin\/?p=79353"},"modified":"2026-01-13T17:58:51","modified_gmt":"2026-01-13T17:58:51","slug":"acceleration-of-preparations-for-the-mediterranean-games-required","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kosovapress.com\/eng\/admin\/acceleration-of-preparations-for-the-mediterranean-games-required\/","title":{"rendered":"Acceleration of preparations for the Mediterranean Games required"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h2>Kosovo is preparing for a wide-ranging cycle of infrastructure investments in connection with the 2030 Mediterranean Games, which are expected to mark a significant turning point for sport in the country. The responsible institutions have presented the plans and implementation timeline for key projects, which include new sports facilities, reconstruction and modernization of existing capacities, as well as the creation of conditions for organizing an event of high international standards.<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Acceleration of preparations for the Mediterranean Games required\" width=\"1200\" height=\"675\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/Uqhx-LdpRf4?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Speaking about the scope and significance of the investments, the Secretary General of the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport (MCYS), Bislim Bislimi, revealed to KosovaPress the key infrastructure points where investments will be made in 2026.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cOn the ground, we will have the reconfiguration of the student center, which will serve as the Olympic Village, accommodating a large number of athletes and 12 schools or school gymnasiums in the capital that will serve as training spaces. Then we will have very large-scale investments in the Palace of Youth, Culture, and Sports in the capital. A contract has already been signed with the European Investment Bank for the development of the conceptual and schematic design project, which will be a donation to the state of Kosovo and will precede the negotiation of an international loan to ensure the execution of a project with a total value between \u20ac50 and \u20ac60 million. We will also build a swimming complex or aquatic center, which will be a project developed from scratch, starting from the ground up. We are currently in the stage of determining the location for this massive complex. It is interesting that very few countries have this type of infrastructure because it is both expensive to build and even more expensive to maintain. Additionally, we will establish a sports center complex in B\u00ebrnica or another location proposed to us initially, after which the institutions will make the relevant decisions. In total, we will have an approximate investment value of \u20ac253 million across all facilities and sports complexes allocated for the 2030 Mediterranean Games,\u201d Bislimi stated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>On the other hand, the President of the Kosovo Olympic Committee, Ismet Krasniqi, emphasized that time is the key factor and that 2026 must mark the concrete start of sports infrastructure construction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIt is mandatory that 2026 begins because we no longer have time\u2026 Sports facilities require time\u2014to complete their design, to build them, and to bring them into operation. This takes time. We cannot afford to waste any. 2026 must be the decisive year for the start of new facilities that have been planned, as well as for the improvement or reconstruction of existing ones,\u201d Krasniqi said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Meanwhile, the President of the Kosovo University Sports Federation, Musa Selimi, highlighted that the process so far and international support demonstrate that Kosovo is on the right path. He stressed that organizing the Mediterranean Games will be a historic moment for Kosovar sport.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThe assembly itself recently in Portugal demonstrated that Kosovo is on the right path. We need to work hard to create the conditions, but also to be ready, because we are not lacking anything compared to other countries\u2014we already participate in various Universiades, European, and World Championships. Believe me; others do not have anything more than us. On the contrary, we bear greater responsibility when we are hosts, perhaps also due to our tradition of hospitality in our country. In this regard, Kosovo has a bright sporting future ahead. The Mediterranean Games will be the key and the seal of sports development in Kosovo,\u201d Selimi said. The Mediterranean Games represent one of the largest multisport events in the world, bringing together countries from Europe, Africa, and Asia along the Mediterranean basin, held every four years under the umbrella of the International Committee of Mediterranean Games. For Kosovo, the 2030 edition is not just a sporting event, but a strategic state project aimed at long-term infrastructure development, strengthening organizational capacities, and enhancing the country\u2019s international image, leaving a sustainable legacy for athletes and the sporting community, long after the competitions conclude. \/A. Bytyqi\/<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Kosovo is preparing for a wide-ranging cycle of infrastructure investments in connection with the 2030 Mediterranean Games, which are expected to mark a significant turning point for sport in the country. The responsible institutions have presented the plans and implementation timeline for key projects, which include new sports facilities, reconstruction and modernization of existing capacities, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":79354,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[301,306,298,296,299],"tags":[6483],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kosovapress.com\/eng\/admin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/79353"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kosovapress.com\/eng\/admin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kosovapress.com\/eng\/admin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kosovapress.com\/eng\/admin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kosovapress.com\/eng\/admin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=79353"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/kosovapress.com\/eng\/admin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/79353\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":79372,"href":"https:\/\/kosovapress.com\/eng\/admin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/79353\/revisions\/79372"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kosovapress.com\/eng\/admin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/79354"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kosovapress.com\/eng\/admin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=79353"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kosovapress.com\/eng\/admin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=79353"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kosovapress.com\/eng\/admin\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=79353"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}