ENGSO Youth was present at the Gender Equality and Sport+ Conference, the annual event of the Global Observatory for Gender...
We give youth a real say in sport
In 2002, national sport organisations united to form a coalition to fight for youth rights within the European sport movement. The independent youth body of the European Sports NGO (ENGSO) – ENGSO Youth was born.
Supported by:
EUYOUSPORT Final Conference
“Evidence-based youth participation in sport governance: from policy to practice”
Location and date
- 15-16 October
- Split, Croatia
Programme
Nadica Sechkov
ENGSO Youth Partnerships and Projects Manager
Nadica Sechkov has been working with ENGSO Youth for the past five years and currently serves as Project and Partnership Manager. In her role, she coordinates European projects and partnerships and leads ENGSO Youth’s work on health and social inclusion, with a strong focus on youth participation and inclusive sport. She also works as a Sport for Development consultant, supporting young people and organisations in using sport as a tool for social inclusion, personal development and positive change.
Tiago Guilherme
ENGSO Youth Managing Director
Tiago Guilherme is the Managing Director of ENGSO Youth. He is the EUYOUSPORT project coordinator and develops and leads initiatives and advocacy aimed at increasing youth participation in sport governance.
Luca Wernert
German Sports Youth Board Member – ENGSO Youth Acting Chair
Luca Wernert has been a board member of German Sports Youth, the youth organization of the German Olympic Sports Confederation, since 2018 and became a member of the ENGSO Youth Committee in 2023. In both organizations, he is committed to the children and youth sports of tomorrow and focuses in particular on youth involvement. He studied political science and works as an agency manager in a communications and consulting agency. As a local councillor, he is also politically active in his home town.
Dr. Anna-Maria Strittmatter
Associate Professor in Sport Management
Örebro University, Sweden
Dr. Anna-Maria Strittmatter is Associate Professor in Sport Management at Örebro University, Sweden. She has extensive experience in both sport research and practice, as Secretary General of the World Snowboard Federation, Vice-President of the Norwegian
Board Sports Federation, and founding board member of Tverga, the Norwegian resource centre for self-organized sport and physical activity.
Her research focuses on sport governance and sport event management. In recent years, Anna-Maria has focused on youth participation and organizational change, with particular attention to how young people can gain meaningful influence in the governance of sport organizations. Her work has examined youth committees, young leaders, and young people’s involvement in sport governance, including in the context of the Youth Olympic Games.
More broadly, her research addresses sport policy making and implementation, stakeholder inclusion in decision making, sustainable development, and the governance of sport and
sport events.
Siiri Turunen
Finnish Olympic Committee – ENGSO Youth Committee member
Siiri works as a professional coach and as a Youth Participation Coordinator at the Finnish Olympic Committee, where she promotes youth participation in sport and works to strengthen young people’s voice in sport decision-making. Turunen also holds decision-making positions in several sport organisations.
André Urban
International Officer, OPES aps, Italy
André Urban is an International Officer at OPES aps, Italy, where he supports the implementation of its international projects, volunteers management, and fosters the collaboration between the organization’s extensive national and international network.
He holds a Master’s degree in Project Cycle Management from UNINT, a Master’s degree in International Cooperation on Human Rights and Intercultural Heritage from the University of Bologna, as well as a Bachelor’s degree in Communication Sciences, specializing in Advertising and Filmmaking, from the Universidad de Lima (Perú).
With experience in the third sector and cultural industries, he’s developed a particular interest in the role of sport as a driver of social change, civic participation, sustainability, and inclusion. His work with OPES and its network of over 10,000 member clubs has strengthened their commitment to moving beyond project boundaries and ensuring that initiatives reach and meaningfully impact the communities they are designed to serve.
Tiago Guilherme
ENGSO Youth Managing Director
Tiago Guilherme is the Managing Director of ENGSO Youth. He is the EUYOUSPORT project coordinator and develops and leads initiatives and advocacy aimed at increasing youth participation in sport governance.
Read our latest news
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Young Delegates and Alumni Club come together to explore Education & Employability
On 23 September 2026, ENGSO Youth Young Delegates and Alumni Club members came together online for a joint meeting focused...
Our definition of organised grassroots sport:
“Organised physical and sport activity practiced by people of all ages at a non-professional level and regardless of skills and ambitions. The activities are carried out on a regular basis for health, educational, social purposes and the enjoyment of movement and sense of belonging.”
We work on issues concerning young people and sport
of young people participated in a sport club over the last 12 months.
of young people have at some point in their life participated in cultural or sports activities in another EU country.
In 24 out of 27 Member States, a sport club is the type of youth organisation young people are most likely to have participated in.
of youth aged 15-24 exercise or play sport with some regularity.
choose sport clubs as preferred space for young people’s participation.
Source: Eurobarometer Youth and Democracy (2024)
Source: Eurobarometer Sport and Physical Activity (2022)
Our work is based on 5 working groups
Education & employability
Sport diplomacy
Health
Social inclusion
Sustainable development
We run a Young Delegates programme
ENGSO Youth Young Delegates programme connects individuals who are willing to take meaningful action and play an important role in advocating and empowering children and young people in the sport for all sector. It is a devoted and knowledgeable group of individuals (18-30 years old), committed to using sport as a tool for positive social change.
These are our latest position papers
Youth participation in sport organisations: quo vadis?
Young people remain largely underrepresented when it comes to decision-making in sport clubs and organisations.
Conclusions of the European Youth & Sport Platform 2023
Around 100 participants, four days, three high-level sessions, nine workshops… From 1-4 June 2023, young leaders from all over Europe...
We work with European and international organisations
Institutions
MOU and partner organisations
We support
Brighton plus Helsinki Declaration
2015 TAFISA World Sustainability award winner
ENGSO Youth Secretariat
Address:
House of Sports, Box 110 16, 100 61 Stockholm, Sweden
Email:
[email protected]