EU awards Cyprus Prisons Department for diversity in sports

The Prisons Department emerged among the top three organisations participating in the pan-European competition #Beinclusive EU Sport Award 2022 and won an award under the “Celebrating Diversity” category.

The EU Commission competition is concerned about good practices in sport and innovative ideas and initiatives aiming at the inclusion of all social groups with respect for diversity.

It received 87 project submissions from across Europe, among them is the Cypriot prisons department submission, the only prison participating. It won the award for “Celebrating Diversity” along with the sum of €2500 that will be deposited in the inmates’ Welfare Fund.

Sports are an integral part of the daily life in prison and contributes to the education, physical and mental health of detainees. To this end, the prison directorate has set up eight gyms, ping pong tables, volleyball, badminton, football, basketball, tennis, and futsal courts across the prison’s open spaces along with state-of-the-art sports equipment available to all detainees. Callisthenic fitness equipment has also been installed in the prison’s outdoor areas.

This result is another recognition and reward for the work done in the Prisons Department and the changes it has gone through over the last eight years, an official press release said.