Community involvement in Latvia

On 25 April 2007, Hansabank signed a collaboration agreement with the Latvian Wheelchair Basketball Federation whereby the bank will sponsor the national wheelchair basketball team. The sport has grown increasingly popular in Latvia and six teams have already been established and are competing in the fourth Latvian Wheelchair Basketball Championship. There is also a national team and, in the summer of 2005, it took part in Division C of the European Championships. The members of the national team are currently preparing for the 2007 Championships. Although no Latvians have won any international tournaments to date, Raimonds Beginskis (Livani), who currently plays in the Italian national wheelchair basketball team, will, for the first time, play for Latvia in the European Championships.

Hansabank and the Latvian National Women’s Basketball Team have published an exclusive charity calendar for which 12 team members have posed. This is the first time a project of this kind has been undertaken in Latvia and the proceeds will be used to support the Latvian Basketball Veterans’ Social Fund and the rehabilitation program for legendary basketball player Uljana Semjonova. The 1,000 copies of the calendar will only be distributed to donors and will not be on sale or given away as gifts.

In cooperation with Hansabank, the players of the Latvian national basketball team have launched a project called “Read and Achieve More!” Players in the national men’s and women’s teams have undertaken to visit schools on a regular basis to foster young people’s understanding of the role of reading in human development. The campaign is also sponsored by the Latvian National Library and the Latvian Basketball Union. To promote the campaign, a video has been produced.