ABSTRACT
Sport has become an important cultural element in representing a national identity that has been weak and uncertain in Belarus, the state maintaining a very centralised organisation of sport, attempting to homogenise a specific cultural identity. This chapter presents sports in Belarus as a sociological, political and cultural phenomenon. It analyses sports as a way of understanding Belarusian society. The chapter examines the process of national construction in Belarus, looking at the cultural symbols that were chosen in relation to the surrounding geopolitics. It analyses the central role of the state in sport, its organisation and resources, as well as the sporting practice of the general population. Finally, the chapter examines the two most important mega events hosted in the country: the 2014 Ice Hockey World Championship and the 2019 European Games. Obliged by its setting, Belarus is heading towards a neoliberal economy, but with a government that has authoritarian traits, similar to others in its geographical position.
