ENGSO Youth brings the youth perspective to the 2023 EU Sport Forum
The 2023 edition of the EU Sport Forum took place on 2-3 May 2023, in Stockholm, Sweden, under the Swedish Presidency of the Council of the EU. With a strong representation, ENGSO and ENGSO Youth actively contributed to the event with ENGSO Youth Chair, Ugnė Chmeliauskaite, Project and Policy Manager, Tiago Guilherme, and Young Delegate, Tabea Werner, joining the #HealthyLifestyle4all Youth Ideas Labs initiative and ENGSO President Stefan Bergh being one of the guest speakers in the panel discussion on “Women in sport: from grassroots to leadership”.
This year’s discussions revolved around the topics of integrity, good governance and gender equality. The event also addressed the sustainability of sporting events, the importance of sport for physical and mental health, and skills and competences development of athletes. The award ceremony for the #BeInclusive EU Sport Awards also took place during the forum. Last but not least, youth representatives received another opportunity to raise their voices and advocate for youth sport, health and inclusion.
ENGSO Youth Chair, Ugnė Chmeliauskaite, Project and Policy Manager Tiago Guilherme and Young Delegate Tabea Werner joined the #HealthyLifestyle4all Youth Ideas Lab initiative for the second year in a row. Through this initiative, established by the European Commission in 2022, they had the opportunity to share the youth perspectives on healthy lifestyle for all and lead the session “Innovative youth voices in sport: what’s in it for you?” together with other participants of the Youth Ideas Lab.
During the session, Tiago and Ugnė explained why youth voices are important for the sport sector, namely because:
- Youth is the largest segment practising sport and physical activity, and therefore a key stakeholder within the Sports sector;
- Sports clubs are the preferred space for young people’s participation in society;
- Young people are the main driving force for volunteering in sports;
- Young people can help co-create the European Sport policy and projects, helping move forward with the European Sport agenda;
- And young people, with all their knowledge and skills, are a driver for innovation in sports.
The potential to replicate the Youth Ideas Labs at local and national levels was also stressed during the session. The implementation of the initiative at the national level would contribute to giving Youth a real say in Sport, bringing young people closer to decision-making processes and constitute a great contribution to the long-lasting legacy of the European Year of Youth 2023.
The Forum began on Tuesday, 2 May, with welcome speeches from Mariya Gabriel, European Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth (video speech), Jakob Forssmed, Swedish Minister for Social Affairs and Public Health, and Tomasz Frankowski, Member of the European Parliament.
The opening was followed by the high-level panel discussion “Women in sport: from grassroots to leadership” in which ENGSO President Stefan Bergh highlighted the importance of gender balances, at all levels of sport – from grassroots to leadership, in order for sport organisations and clubs to work and perform better.
The 2023 EU Sport Forum also included info sessions about the SHARE funding, European Week of Sport 2023, and the award ceremony for the #BeInclusive awards.
Other ENGSO representatives included the Honorary President Birgitta Kervinen, ENGSO ExCom member Magnus Svedrup, ENGSO EU Advisory Committee chair Theo Neyenhuis, ENGSO Officer Director Marie Denitton and ENGSO Policy and Coordination Officer Elisabeth Strobach.
More information about the 2023 EU Sport Forum can be found here: https://www.eusportforum2023.eu/agenda/
