

On October 2-4, the University of Cassino and Southern Lazio hosted the 2023 EAS Annual Conference “Promoting wellbeing in dual career” at the Angioino-Aragonese Castle in Gaeta. The participants were welcomed by Prof. Cristina Cortis, Rector Delegate for Sport and President of the Organizing Committee, Prof. Laura Capranica, President of EAS.
The first sessions were dedicated to “EU Sport Policies and Opportunities”, introduced by a video message of MEP Tomasz Frankowski, Rapporteur of “EU sports policy: Assessment and possible ways forward”, who underlined that dual career is no longer considered for athletes only but for all the sportspersons (e.g., coaches, physical trainers, referees, sports managers) struggling to combine their sport commitment with quality education and work careers. The online presentation of Mrs. Izabela Pelczynska, European Education and Culture Executive Agency of the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA), informed the audience regarding the European policies and funding opportunities for innovative projects in dual career. Mr. Andrea Carletti, Vice-Chair of the Governing Board of the Enlarged Partial Agreement on Sport (EPAS) at the Council of Europe and Member of the Sport Department at the Italian Presidency of Council of Ministers, illustrated the role of EPAS and its Consultative Committee of International organizations in supporting the advancement of the sport culture and dialogue, and highlighted the recent approval of the Italian Parliament to include sports in the article 33 of the Italian Constitution, which is dedicated to education and science. The recent celebration of the World Fair Play Day and the introduction of the 365-day calendar of the European Fair Play Movement (EFPM) were presented by Mr. Ruggero Alcanterini, President of the Italian Fair Play Committee, who invited the participants to attend in streaming the next EFPM conference “Fair Play and Racism” to be held on November 23 in Baku, Azerbaigian.
The dual career activities of major International and European sports associations were illustrated by Mr. William Thompson from the International University Sports Federation – FISU who introduced the FISU DC Toolkit to facilitate the development of dual career globally; Mr. Joerg Förster and Mr. Andrej Pišl from the European University Sport Association – EUSA who reported on the actual sports activities at European level and the current involvement with EAS in EU-funded dual career projects BRAVA-DC (2020-2023) and the DiscoverU to be started next January 2024; and Linda Rombolá from European Non-Governmental Sports Organisation – ENGSO, who presented the Capacity Building project Sports as Values and aiming to foster positive values and enhancing grassroots sports in Western Balkan countries, respectively.
The following session was dedicated to the development of Italian DC policies, including the recent publication of the National DC Guidelines. Prof. Stefania Orrù from the Italian Society of Movement and Sport Sciences – SISMES acknowledged the advances of research in the dual career area and anticipated the signature of a Memorandun of Understanding with EAS during the XIV SISMES Congress (Naples, November 2-4, 2023). Colonel Walter Borghino from the International Military Sport Council and Italian Defence General Staff, illustrated the relevant role of the military sector in supporting sports by providing opportunities of dual career at the workplace, although different arrangements between army corps and countries are in place. Prof Antonio Tessitore, President of the European Network of Sport Education – ENSE and President of the Bachelor Degree in Sports Sciences at the University of Rome Foro Italico, underlined the relevant role of quality education in sports also for elite coaches through the dedicated dual career educational programmes at the Foro Italico University. In considering that EAS, ENSE, and EUSA are members of the Consultative Committee of EPAS – Council of Europe, Prof. Tessitore anticipated the preparation of a Memorandum of Understanding. Mr. Marco Arpino from the Italian National Olympic Committee – CONI presented the Italian DC Guidelines developed in cooperation with the Network of Italian Universities interested in sports – UNISPORT Italia, the Italian University Sports Federation – CUSI, and the Italian National Paralympic Committee – CIP, which represent a good practice and a further opportunity to develop dual career policies in Italy. The role of dual career in Italy was further offered by Mr. Carlo Molfetta, Gold Olympic Medalist in Taekwondo at the 2012 London Games and Member of the Italian National Athletes’ Commission at CONI, who highlighted the crucial role of the athletes’ representativeness in sports bodies and the support he received from the Italian Taekwondo Federation – FITA for his dual career in education and work, which allowed him to graduate in higher education while working as a sports manager.
The dedicated session to the 2023 Bengt Nybelius Scholarship was awarded to dr. Alejandro Leiva-Arcas from the Universitad Catolica de Murcia – UCAM for his paper entitled “Perceived Barriers for Student-Athletes with Disabilities: A Comparative Analysis according to the State’s Dual Career Support Policy System”, which offered novel findings from scientific data collected in five countries (Spain, Portugal, Italy, Romania and Ireland) during the recently completed EU ERASMUS+Sport project Para-limits aiming to adapt the dual career mentoring model to high-level athletes with disabilities.
The last session of the first day was dedicated to the significant evolution of dual career at seven Italian Universities. In particular, Prof. Giuliana Gobbi illustrated the special dual career financial support at the University of Parma, Prof. Alberto Rainoldi reported on the dual-career programme and the healthy campus at the University of Turin, Prof. Sergio Bellantonio highlighted the positive aspects of a blended learning for dual career students’ wellbeing at the University of Foggia, Prof. Stefano Bastianon from the University of Bergamo proposed an interesting legal approach for the protection of student-athletes taking into consideration the relevance of EU law, Prof. Raymond Siebetcheu introduced a plurilingual dual career education programme at the University for Foreigners of Siena in light of the massive phenomenon of migration, dr. Ida Cariati offered the approach to balanced lifestyles of student-athletes at the University of Rome Tor Vergata, Dr. Davide Malacrida presented the state-of-the-art and future challenges for improvements of the dual career programme at the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore – UCSC, and dr. Francesca Vitali explained the peer-tutoring organized at the University of Verona in cooperation with the University Sport Centre – CUS and the Centre for Educational Rights – ESU to facilitate the organization of individualized study programmes of athletes.
On the second day, Juan-Alfonso Garcia-Roca introduced the session focused on the promotion of wellbeing in dual career through a holistic approach followed by lectures on the potential benefits of quality sleeping strategies for recovery of elite women volleyball student-athletes by dr. Luca Rossini from the University of Cassino and Southern Lazio, the role of empowerment for personal development and wellbeing of athletes by Prof. Inga Staškevičiūtė-Butienė from the Lithuanian Sports University, the outcomes of workshops and panels with athletes and entrepreneurs by Prof. Romana Caput-Jogunica from the University of Zagreb and Croatian Olympic Committee, and the recent dual career programme at the Catholic University of Valencia by Jorge Terraces.
Seven presentations highlighted Dual Career Best Practices and Research. Prof. Pertii Huotari from the University of Jyväskylä underlined the relevant role of parents and friends for dual career at high school level, Prof. Piotr Rodak from the Academy of Physical Education in Katowice (Poland) illustrated the individual plan and study programmes at his university, Prof. Agita Abele from the Latvian Academy of Sports Education presented the dual career support for student-athletes in Latvia, Prof Pierluigi Diotaiuti from the University of Cassino and Southern Lazio proposed a monitoring tool for the development of a friendly dual career environment, Mr. Aku Nikander from the University of Jyväskylä highlighted the role of developmental evaluation in enhancing dual career environments, Prof. Irena Valantinė from the Lithuanian Sports University posed entrepreneurship and self-employment career options for elite athletes, Prof. Attilio Sacripanti from the International Judo Academy Foundation (IJF) addressed the outcomes of the ERASMUS+Sport project EDJCO on an online educational programme for facilitating the continuous education of employee-judo coaches, and Juan Alfonso Garcia-Roca from UCAM explained the aims and progression of the ERASMUS+Sport Project S4SC Sport for Social Change.
At the end of the morning and afternoon sessions of the second day, the participants contributed to the EAS workshops of the ERASMUS+Sport BRAnd Values Alignment through Dual Career (BRAVA-DC, 622824-EPP-1-2020-1-IE-SPO-SCP) organized by EAS in cooperation with Prof. Giovanni Mattia from University RomaTre and requiring the participants to grade the clarity of the 16 guidelines developed for enhancing dual career at the workplace, and of TALENT project (101090147- ERASMUS-SPORT-2022-SCP) organized by EAS in cooperation with dr. Martina Albanese and dr. Domenico Vicari from the University of Palermo asking participants’ opinions on the most relevant factors for identifying and supporting talents.
Mr. Ole Keldorf, EAS General Secretary, chaired the 2023 Annual General Assembly during which the activities carried out in this year have been summarized and unanimously approved, including the Annual Conference, online cafés, newletters, the participation in and application for European ERASMUS+ Sport Collaborative Partnerships (BRAVA-DC, Compath, DC Mentor, DiscoverU, ElCAMP, Find Me, Para-limits, Smart Start and Talent) and the Capacity Building “Sports as Values”, the cooperation with European institutions, academies, sports bodies, and policy makers, the signature of a Memorandum of Understanding with the European Fair Play Movement, and two Memorandum of Understanding to be signed with SISMES and ENSE. The outcomes of the participated survey on EAS Members’, Policy Makers’, and Stakeholders’ opinions regarding the Network vision and activities have been reported, which were precious to define the EAS Strategic Plan for the 2023-2026 quadrennium confirming the previous aims and activities extended also to talents in performing arts. It was announced that the 2024 EAS Conference will be held in Katowice (Poland), and the proposals for the 2026 Conference in Oulu (Finland) and 2027 Conference in Croatia, with an open call for the 2025 Conference. Prof. Mojca Doupona presented the 2022 Financial report, also unanimously approved. At the end of the General Assembly, the EAS members and stakeholders presented their appreciation to the Executive Board for its dedication to the dual career family and Andrej Pisl from EUSA announced that the President of EAS was awarded the “EUSA Medal of Appreciation” for her long-term commitment in EAS.
After the EAS General Assembly, Prof. Rajmund Tomik and Piotr Rozak presented the preliminary information of the 2024 EAS Conferences to be held in Katowice, Poland, which has been awarded the title of European City of Science 2024.
The third day of the event included a tour to the Montecassino Abbey and the closing ceremony at the University of Cassino and Southern Lazio, with the participation of the President of CUS, and the Paralympic Champion and Lieutenant Colonel of the Italian Army Giuseppe Campoccio, who qualified for Paris 2024.
During the conference breaks, lunches, dinners, the visit to Gaeta and its Serapo beach, and the final tour the participants had plenty of opportunities to interact and envisage new innovative projects to be submitted during the next Call for ERASMUS+Sport Collaborative Partnerships and Capacity Buildings. Also this year, the large delegation of Finnish Rectors and the Brazilian participants confirmed that the EAS Conference is a crucial event to further develop a European dual career discourse in and beyond Europe.
On behalf of the EAS Board, President Capranica thanked the Organizing Committee and the University of Cassino and Southern Lazio staff for their efforts to organize such a wonderful start of the 2023-2026 quadrennium to be continued in Katowice, Poland in 2024.
Further information is available at Instagram and facebook easconference2023
THE FINNISH DELEGATION AT THE EAS CONFERENCE
After the conference in Gaeta, Italy, which focused on dual careers and well-being, we, the representatives of sports academies in Finland, would like to express our gratitude. The conference was a valuable opportunity for us to learn more about how to support young athletes in their pursuit of balancing sports and education.
We want to thank the organizers and all the speakers for their insightful presentations and sharing of best practices. The discussions and exchange of experiences with fellow participants have provided us with new ideas and strategies to help our students achieve both athletic and academic success.
The seminar also offered an opportunity to engage in discussions with representatives from other sports academies and share best practices. This helped us in developing more supportive programs and resources for our students, enabling them to achieve both their athletic and academic goals.
The conference has strengthened our commitment to continue working together to support young athletes in their dual careers and promote their well-being. We look forward to future collaborations and opportunities to share experiences. Thank you for this enriching and inspiring conference.
On June 1st, 2023, more than 80 participants, including university students from Niš (Serbia) attended online the tenth EAS Cafè “Dual career as European sports diplomacy”, moderated by Prof. Antonio Sanchez-Pato, Director of the Sports Science Area at the Universidad Internacional de La Rioja (UNIR, Spain) and member of the EAS Executive Committee.
Prof. Sanchez-Pato introduced the theme of the Cafè by offering the definitions of sport diplomacy and examples of this powerful tool to improve the dialogue, relations, and cultural exchanges between communities, to defuse tensions and to build bridges between countries. He also highlighted the role of education of sportspersons whose experiences of a globalized sport environment could help them developing skills useful in the diplomatic arena. Finally, he emphasized the potential of e-learning to support dual career worldwide, especially in considering that some European universities historically have a relevant cultural exchange in other continents, such as Latin America.
The first speaker, Prof. Felipe Rodrigues Da Costa, Assistant Professor at the Physical Education Faculty of the Brasilia University (FEF/UnB) and Coordinator of the Post-graduate Program in Physical Education, summarized the development of dual career in Latin America, starting from his post-doc experience at the University of Coimbra and his cooperation with Prof. Antonio Figueiredo, Member of the EAS Excecutive Committee. He illustrated not only his personal dedication to the development of dual career research in Latin America that resulted in a tremendous increase of scientific contributions during the past few years, but also the capitalization of the good practice of EAS for establishing a dual career Ibero-American network, which resulted in the organization of international seminars and the participation of Brazilian delegates to the EAS conference.
The second speaker, Prof. Karim Chamari, Head of Aspetar Injury and Illness Prevention Program (ASPREV) at Aspetar, Doha (Qatar) presented his difficulties in combining his academic and sport careers as a Tunisian Olympic windsurfer at the Barcelona Games in 1992. Whilst in Tunisia he struggled to have dual career arrangements at academic level, as a PhD student at the University of Montpellier (France) he engaged in personal negotiations with his PhD tutor to have a 4-month break from his research studies to prepare for the Olympic Games. Suffering a sudden end of his sport career due to an unexpected severe pathology, Prof. Chamari benefited from his bio-medical studies to recover his condition. Despite a lack of institutional dual career support, Prof. Chamari’s determination made him a well-prepared coach of professional soccer players and one of the most rewarded outstanding scholars.
In summarizing the general discussion, Prof. Sanchez-Pato underlined the main role of dual career in establishing understanding between cultures, scientific research, and cooperation between organizations. He also urged young researcher to send their application to the Bengt Nybelius Scholarship before July 1, 2023, and anticipated that an EAS survey will be mailed to its internal and external stakeholders to collect their opinions regarding the past and future EAS activities. Before closing the Tenth EAS Cafè, the participants were informed that the next EAS Cafè will be organized in fall, after the Annual Conference to be held in Gaeta next October 2-4, 2023.
Tenth EAS Online Cafè
“Dual career as European sports diplomacy”
Zoom Meeting June 1, 2023 (from 12:00 CET)
12:00 Welcome words: Prof. Antonio Sanchez-Pato
Director of the Department of Sports Sciences. Faculty of Health Sciences, International University of La Rioja.
12:10 – Prof. Felipe Rodrigues Da Costa: “Dual Career in Brazil: research, actions, and the (possible) European Experience”.
Prof. Felipe Rodrigues Da Costa is Assistant Professor at the Physical Education Faculty of the Brasilia University (FEF/UnB) and Coordinator of the Post-graduate Program in Physical Education – PPGEF/UnB. He is the Coordinator of the Research Group on Sports Training and Athlete Career (DuCa), President of the Brazilian Association on Dual Career (ABDC), Member of the IberoAmerican Network on Dual Career, and develops research on dual careers at master’s and doctorate levels. Prof. Da Costa has been working with the theme of dual careers since 2010 when he started his Ph.D. at Gama Filho University in Rio de Janeiro (Brazil), and participated in the organization of the International Seminar on Dual Careers and other events. He completed a postdoctoral internship at the University of Coimbra, supervised by Professor Dr. Antonio Figueiredo.
12:30 – Prof. Karim Chamari: “Surfing: from the sea’ waves to online research papers’’
Prof. Karim Chamari is Head of Aspetar Injury and Illness Prevention Program (ASPREV) at Aspetar, Doha, Qatar. He is a former elite athlete who participated in the 1992 Barcelona Olympic Game in windsurfing. Doctor in Exercise Physiology and University Full Professor, Prof. Chamari is one of the most active Sport Science researchers. He has published 400+ publications in peer-review journals (H-index 66, Scopus) and more than 20 book chapters, particularly focused on football (soccer) science and medicine and Ramadan fasting. He has also an extensive field experience as fitness coach of professional Tunisian Footballers for more than 10 years. Prof. Chamari has been the leader of the Tunisian Research Laboratory ‘Sport Performance Optimization’ of the National Centre of Medicine and Science in Sport, Tunis, Tunisia for 10 years before joining Qatar in 2013.
12:50 – General discussions and concluding remarks
On April 20-21, 2023 The University of Rome Foro Italico (Italy) hosted the EAS Executive Board. During the meeting, the cooperation of EAS with European Institutions consolidated in 2020-2023 have been summarized to provide a basis of the development of the 2023-2026 strategic plan to be discussed and approved by the General Assembly during the 2023 EAS Conference to be held in Gaeta, Italy next October 2-4, 2023.
The roles of three EAS Committees have been discussed. In particular, the EAS Scientific Committee Antonio Tessitore – UNIMED, Chair); Elena Conde, UCAM – Masar Gjaka, UBT) will foster dual career research and select the 2023 Bengt Nybelius Scholarship winners; of the EAS Communication Committee (Cristina Cortis – University of Cassino, Chaur; Piotr Rodak – Academy of Physical Education in Katowice, – Lotte Juhl – ESAA) will work to increase the visibility of the EAS Conference in the EAS website and social media; and the New Generation EAS Committee (Flavia Guidotti – University of Rome Foro Italico, Chair; Sara Seidl, University of Mannheim; Hakon Ege, Collins Innovation) will provide new ideas for the EAS Cafè and other activities.
The development of the ongoing European projects (BRAVA-DC, coordinated by the University of Limerick, Ireland; COMPATH, coordinated by Collective Innovation AS -COLINN, Norway; PARA-LIMITS, coordinated by UCAM, Spain; TALENT coordinated by the Center of Excellence of Split Dalmatia County, Croatia; and SPORTS AS VALUE coordinated by ENGSO, Sweden) and the application to six new proposals have been presented also in light of the new rules of the European Commission.
During a meeting with Prof. Cristina Cortis from the University of Cassino and Southern Lazio, the main aspects of the 2023 EAS Conference “Promoting Wellbeing in dual Career” and the cultural programme have been examined. Early registration fees (until August 1, 2023) will be 300 EUR for EAS Members and 450 EUR for non-members (including 150 EUR of 2023 EAS membership). After August 1, 2023, registration fees will be 400 EUR for EAS Members, and 550 EUR for not EAS members (including 150 EUR of EAS membership).
Save the date: the 10th EAS Cafè ““Dual career as European sports diplomacy beyond Europe” will be held on June 1, 2023.
On February 27th the ninth virtual EAS cafè focused on the dual career from the educational and employment perspectives and the human rights of the sportsperson. The event attracted more than 100 participants, including university students from Niš (Serbia). Prof. Antonio Tessitore from the University of Rome Foro Italico moderated the event.
The first speaker, Dr Köle Gjeloshaj (Vice President of the Panathlon Wallonie Brussels, strategic coordinator for the Féderation Wallonie Brussels in the context of the Belgium EU Presidency 2024 in the department of the International Relations, and scientific collaborator of the Université libre de Bruxelles), highlighted the relevance and intriguing nature of the title of the event, particularly in relation to its novelty within the international sport environment.
He focused on the framework and approach of the IOC and other major international sports organizations in relation to the safeguard of human rights, the human resources management, and the dual career support for elite sportspersons (i.e., the IOC/Adecco Athlete365 Career+ programme). In particular, Dr. Gjeloshaj stressed the need to establish a legal framework that should guarantee the rights of elite athletes as workers and/or as students within different parallel and/or transition career trajectories and a lifelong learning perspective. Furthermore, in considering the relevant competencies and skills developed through and during an elite athletic career, the employment sector should further recognize the value of sportspersons as workers, which could also be a concrete action from the corporate social responsibility perspective.
The second speaker, Dr Giovanni Di Cola (Special Adviser at the International Labour Organization, ILO) presented current practices and recommendations in relation to the advancement of decent work in sport. Concrete examples have been presented (i.e., the IOC sustainability strategy; the UEFA sustainability strategy), which highlighted the need to adopt a comprehensive approach to guarantee appropriate and sustainable working policies and conditions in the sport sector. To meet the needs of a complex and rapid development of sport environment, Dr. Di Luca claimed that there is an urgent need for major sports organizations to take actions and accelerate the processes. Major recommendations included the focus on athletes’ working conditions and collective bargaining, the acceleration of sustainability in sport, the reinforcement of dual careers though competencies and skills recognition and development, and the review of traditional models adapting to evolving environments and conditions within the sport sector.
Following the general discussion addressing the main themes discussed during the Cafè, both speakers emphasized the urgent need of a cooperation between organizations for concrete and effective actions accelerating the policy development and implementation processes of the recognition of the rights of elite sportspersons as students and workers,
In closing the event, President Laura Capranica informed that the tenth EAS Cafè will be organized in April/May and that the University of Cassino and Lazio Meridionale will organize the 2023 EAS Conference in Gaeta (Italy). Finally, the President invited young researchers to apply to the Bengt Nybelius Scholarship.
“Dual Career from Education to Work: Human Right of the Sportsperson”
Zoom Meeting February 27, 2023 (from 12:00 CET)
12:00 Welcome
Prof. Antonio Tessitore, PhD – University of Rome Foro Italico, and Chair of the EAS Scientific Committee.
12:10 – Köle Gjeloshaj, PhD: “Dual career of athletes at the International sports organizations”
Vice-President of the Panathlon Wallonie-Bruxeles, Belgium and strategic coordinator of the president of the European Fair-Play Movement, Scientific Collaborator at the Université Libre de Bruxelles, dr. Gjeloshaj worked from 1996 to 2017 at the International University Sports Federation (FISU), for which he set up the educational and development departments as Director of the Educational department. He joined the International School Sport Federation (ISF) in 2018, where he covered the position of Deputy Secretary General until 2022. He is now a civil servant within the Federation Wallonie Bruxelles as coordinator of the logistical team for the Belgium Presidency of the EU in 2024 of the International Relations Department. Dr. Gjeloshaj was the team leader for FISU of the Proclamation by UNESCO (2015) of the International Day of University Sport. The Co-rapporteur (2021-22) of the High Level Group on Gender Equality in Sport of the European Commission. From 2020 to 2022, he chaired the Consultative Committee of the Enlarged Partial Agreement on Sport of the Council of Europe. He is an alumni of ULB (Political sciences) and the University of Pisa (Anti mafia and corruption).
12:35 – Giovanni Di Cola, PhD: “Rights and obligations and dual career of professional athletes”
Dr. Giovanni Di Cola has a wide experience within the United Nations System, having served in various UN agencies (UNESCO, UNFPA, UNICEF, and ILO) with assignments at the UN Staff College and the UN Secretariat, on matters related to the UN reform, Youth leadership and Sport for Development and Peace. He contributed to establish a network of 150 universities, on local economic development as ILO inter-regional programme (Universitas) coordinator between 2001 and 2008 based in Geneva. Since 2016, he was instrumental in establishing the multistakeholder initiative as Centre for Sport and Human Rights in 2021, to which he ensured that ILO could be represented as founding member and permanent observer. He was lead expert of the ILO Global Forum on Decent work in the world of sport of January 2020, in which the ILO Points of Consensus were adopted.
13:00 – General discussions and concluding Remarks
EAS Online Cafè was held online December 5, 2022
AGENDA
12:00 Welcome
Prof. Daniele Conte, PhD – University of Rome Foro Italico and Lithuanian Sports University.
12:10 Hakon Ege – ELCAMP Project: A Self-employment Career Option for Athletes: Sports Entrepreneurship Bootcamp
Håkon Ege performed Teakwondo professionally for 12 years. After his sporting career, he started to work as a researcher, lecturer and project manager in different organizations such as universities and non-governmental organizations. He is working on encouraging and empowering individuals and organisations to be more innovative and entrepreneurial in and through sport so that they can design, develop and initiate actions that address socio-economic and planetary needs. In 2018, he launched Collective Innovation, an impact-driven initiative to foster and drive innovation in Norway and Europe.
12:25 Sinan Güler – Giving Back to Sports and Innovation
Sinan Güler is a former national basketball player with a 16-year basketball career, winning the league championships and league cup championships, as well as the 2nd place in the World Cup with the National Team in 2010 and the EuroCup with Galatasaray in 2016. In 2011, he started a social initiative called Güler Legacy with his older brother Muratcan Güler, who is also a former basketball player, and his father Necati Güler. Since 2012, he has been doing important work in the field of startup ecosystem, as an angel investor and mentor. Since 2020 he has been interested in sports technologies & innovation.
12:40 Morten Munch Mindegaard – The ATLas project on Dual Career Entrepreneurship
Dual Career Adviser at the Enterprise and Innovation – Innovation and Entrepreneurship (The Kitchen)
of the University of Aarhus. Aarhus University and The Kitchen is part of the Erasmus+ course AtLAS, which is an entrepreneurial course tailor-made for elite athletes who have the opportunity to test themselves in an entrepreneurial context.
12:55 General discussions and concluding Remarks
On September 28-30, the Univesidad Catolica San Antonio de Murcia (UCAM) hosted the 2022 EAS Annual Conference “A Holistic Approach to the Dual Career of the Student Athlete”. In being at the forefront of European Dual Career, UCAM participates in several ERASMUS+ Sport Partnerships, promoted a special issue in its scientific journal Cultura, Ciencia y Deporte, and is the University with the highest number of student-athletes winning medals at the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2021. At the Roman Theatre Museum of Cartagena, the Dean of the Faculty of Sport at UCAM Ms. Lourdes Meroño García, the President of EAS Ms. Laura Capranica, the President of the Organising Committee at UCAM Mr. Juan Alfonso García Roca, and the Delegate Councillor of Tourism of the Cartagena City Council Ms. Cristina Pérez Carrasco welcomed the participants.
Ms. Floor van Houdt (Head of Unit for Sport, DG Education, Youth, Sport and Culture) and Mr. David Kunst (Policy Officer for Evidence & Analysis, DG Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion) presented online the opportunities for sports and employment at the European Commission, whereas Ms. Francine Hetherington Raveney (Deputy Executive Secretary of the EPAS) reported on the actions in the field of sports at the Council of Europe.
Dual career perspectives of the European Sports Organizations were offered by Mr. Andrej Pišl – Communications and Projects Manager at the European University Sports Association (EUSA); Mr. Philippe Housiaux – President of the European Fair Play Movement (EFPM); Ms. Teodora Pletosu – EU Affairs and Public Projects Specialist at Union of European Football Associations (UEFA). The dual career viewpoints of International Sports Organizations were provided by Mr. Kole Gjeloshaj – Director of Institutional and Educational Affairs at International School Sport Federation (ISF); Mr. Bill Thomson – Education Committee Member at International University Sports Federation (FISU) and Mr. Joerg Foerster – Chair Shareholder Committee Rhine-Ruhr 2025 FISU Games gGmbH; and Mr. David Cabello – Executive Board Member of the Badminton World Federation (BWF).
The EAS Conference was also the occasion for the signing of an important Memorandum of Understanding between the ISF and EAS on common dual career interests and close cooperation between the two organisations.
During the first session on dual career best practices and research, the 2022 Bengt Nybelius Scholarship has been awarded to Dr. Andrea Fusco from the University of Cassino and Lazio Meridionale, who presented research findings on dual career relocating elite coaches.
At the end of the first day, the participants contributed to the first workshop of the ERASMUS+Sport BRAnd Values Alignment through Dual Career (BRAVA-DC, 622824-EPP-1-2020-1-IE-SPO-SCP), which required to grade the importance and feasibility of 50 statements on the enhancement of the European workplace environment so the circumstances and challenges of dual career employee-sportspersons can more effectively be accommodated.
On the second day, the event was organized at the UCAM Cartagena Campus and was opened by Mr. Alejandro Leiva Arcas – Secretary of the Faculty of Sport, who reported the strategies and experiences for the promotion of Dual Career of student-athletes. Then, Mr. Sergio López Andújar (General Secretary of the Spanish Futsal Players Association, AJFS) moderated a round table with UCAM dual career athletes (Mr. Agassi Goantara – Indonesian International Basket Player), paralympic athletes (Mr. Gerard Descarrega – Paralympic 400m Gold Medalist; and Mr. Guillermo Rojo – International Athlete and Guide of Mr. Gerard Descarrega), and coaches (Antonio Peñalver – University Professor, International Athletics Coach, Decathlon Silver Olympic Medalist; and Mr. Rafael Alcaraz – International Taekwondo Coach of Olympic and Paralympic athletes).
A second workshop of the BRAVA-DC project was organized to allow the participants to group the 50 statements into categories in terms of meanings according to their individual logic. The expertise and knowledge of the participants in the first and second BRAVA-DC workshops have been considered very valuable in assisting during the development of European guidelines which support Dual Career in the workplace and facilitate appropriate brand alignment strategies and Corporate Social Responsibility policies.
During the annual General Assembly, Mr. Ole Keldorf, Secretary General, summarized the main activities and achievements of the organisation, as well as the financial results. Despite the 2019-2022 quadrennium presented several unexpected challenges, EAS managed to increase its activities organizing online cafès on different dual career aspects of the sportspersons, contributed to the finalization and progression of European ERASMUS+ Sport Partnerships, co-authored several scientific publications, and participated in European cultural and sports events. The delegates also elected the Board for the new 4-year mandate, confirming Ms. Laura Capranica (Italy) in the position of the President, and Ms. Mojca Doupona (Slovenia), Mr. Ole Keldorf (Denmark), Mr. Ilvis Abelkalns (Latvia), Mr. Antonio Sanchez-Pato (Spain), Ms. Laurence BONDEL (France), Mr. Antonio FIGUEIREDO (Portugal) as Members of the Executive Board, which is complemented by the permanent positions of Mr. Risto Keskitalo (Finland) and Mr. Tibor Kozsla (Hungary) as Founder and Honorary President, respectively.
The third day of the event took place in the Roman Theatre Museum of Cartagena and encompassed the second session dedicated to dual career best practices and research, and to Erasmus+Sport projects (e.g., SPRINGBOARD, Athlete Counsellors Against Match Fixing, ELCAMP, Para-limits).
Participants had plenty opportunities to interact and to exchange ideas for future dual career projects and collaborations during the conference breaks, lunches, dinners, the tour to the Roman Theater, and the Tourist Boat trip. The large delegation of Finnish Rectors and the Brazilian participants substantiated the EAS Conference as a crucial event to further develop a European dual career discourse in and beyond Europe.
On behalf of the EAS Board, President Capranica thanked the Organizing Committee and the UCAM staff for their amazing work in organizing such a grand final of the 2019-2022 quadrennium. The 2023-2026 quadrennium is already on the move, with the EAS Members looking forward to the 2023 and 2024 EAS Conferences to be held in Gaeta, Italy, and in Katowice, Poland, respectively.
On June 21 the seventh virtual EAS cafè focused on the dual career of paralympic athletes, which attracted more than 50 participants. Prof. Alejandro Leiva-Arcas, Deputy Director of the Faculty of Sport at UCAM moderated the event and presented the aims and progress of the ERASMUS+ project Dual Career of Student-Athletes with Disabilities as a Tool for Social Inclusion (Para-Limits, 622213-EPP-1-2020-1-ES-SPO-SCP) coordinated by the Catholic University of Murcia (UCAM), Spain, in cooperation with University Foro Italico of Rome (IT), UNEFS (RO), IPV (PT), University of Limerick (IE), COLLINN (NO), EAS Network (MT), the European Paralympic Committee (AT) and the FUNDACION ONCE (ES).
As the first speaker, Lisa Gjessing presented her experience as a taekwondo athlete who underwent the amputation of her left arm. As a legal prosecutor for the Danish police and mother, Lisa described the opportunities provided by the paralympic sport and her challenges in managing her family life, and sport and working careers. She informed that Team Denmark and ESAA offer the same support to Olympic and Paralympic athletes, as well as sponsorships and working flexibility. Furthermore, in case the para-athlete decides to reduce the working hours, her/his salary is maintained with integration from the sports organization. Despite this favourable environment, the para-athlete has to make choices to establish priorities and to manage changes in their programme, especially to manage the parental role.
A different perspective was provided by the Italian Flatwater Sprint Paracanoe Kayaker and Paralympic medallist in Tokyo, Federico Mancarella. Having experienced a disability from his birth, Federico started being engaged in the sport when he was a student. Considering that canoeing requires expensive equipment and long travelling to reach the training and competitive sites, the parents often represent the only support providers. Furthermore, the working sector lacks a dual career culture, so the athletes have to consider dropping out of sports or their working career, which was actually his situation when he fired himself to prepare for the Tokyo Paralympics. Furthermore, parasports do not attract sponsorships because of limited media attention. Federico also envisaged some solutions, including working flexibility, economic support from the public and private sectors, and structured support.
In summarizing the major themes discussed during the Cafè, Prof. Alejandro Leiva-Arcas underlined that the Para-limits project will indicate guidelines for the advancement of dual career policies for paralympic athletes, as well as the need to educate tutors for this special population. Finally, he presented the website of the 2022 EAS Annual Conference to be held in Cartagena, Spain, next September 28-30: http://eventos.ucam.edu/85445/tickets.html
He highlighted that the early bird deadline is August 28 (http://eventos.ucam.edu/85445/section/38290/eas-conference-2022.html), whereas the deadline for the call for abstracts is August 31 (http://eventos.ucam.edu/85445/section/38291/eas-conference-2022.html). Finally, young researchers could apply to the Bengt Nybelius Scholarship before July 1 https://www.dualcareer.eu/call-for-papers-bengt-nybelius-scholarship-2022/.
The Eight EAS Cafè will be organized in Fall 2022.
Have a nice summer and see you in Cartagena.