Meet the Ambassadors of Equal Rights in Sports from Cyprus!

CUT's "Heracitus" research center celebrates the collaboration with great women of Cypriot sports: Konstantina Nikolaou, Natalia Christofi, Kallia Charalambous, Anastasia Christoforou and Dimitriana Charalambous! These are the Cypriot Equal Rights Ambassadors, members of a European network of sportswomen who stand against the phenomena of gender based violence, harassment and discrimination, contributing to breaking the silence.

 The leading Cypriot female athletes responded with great willingness to the request to become Equal Rights Ambassadors by actively participating in the awareness-raising campaign on the issue both in the sports organisations and in the wider Cypriot society. One of our main priorities is to promote the 1440 helpline operated by the Association for the Prevention and Treatment of Violence in the Family (SPAVO) so that women active in sports who have suffered sexual harassment or gender discrimination can contact the organisation and receive psychosocial support.

INTERNATIONAL MEETING UNDER THE EWA PROJECT WAS HELD IN ATHENS

n the period October 11 – 14, 2022, a partner meeting under the EWA project – Empowering Women Athletes: Tackling Feminine Abuse, Violence and Discrimination in EU Sports Clubs was held in Athens, Greece. During the meeting, the partner local training sessions, the prepared training materials (Strategy and tools for the empowerment of female athletes), the established centralized model of the "Help Desk – for Athletes and Women", as well as the crucial role of sports professionals in combating abuse, violence and discrimination against women, were discussed.

Sport is a means of self-expression and fulfilment, as well as a force for citizenship and solidarity, while stressing how violence against women, stereotyping, differences in payment and barriers to women’s involvement in management are still problems tackling the sport sector.

Those barriers act on multiple levels (verbal, physical, sexual, emotional, psychological, social, cultural, organisational, economic, mediatic, etc.) and are collectively perceived as a pervasive chauvinist culture that permeates the career of any female athlete.

The project aims to counter abuse, violence and harassment against female athletes in EU Sports Clubs through a comprehensive approach that collects past and present efforts and forces against the problem in order to power up the overall sports management systems to take charge of it.

The innovative aspect of the project lies in the attempt to strengthen the commitment of all individual beneficiaries by taking on the problem and supporting each other.

SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES:
• Catalyze social players and communities in Europe that already dealt with the issue around a comprehensive dialogue on the state of the art and next steps to take;
• Promote and innovative and multi-layered response to the problem tackled, maximizing and building on past experiences and creating new strategies and tools at EU level;
• Activate beneficiaries in Europe through a grass-roots awareness-rising campaign aiming at acknowledging and valorizing the role of women in sports;
• Produce and disseminate counter-narratives on women in sports though a social-media campaign;
• Test and assess a training and awareness raising campaign addressed to AERS (Ambassadors of Equal Rights in Sports) and sports professionals (coaches, tutors, managers, etc.);
• Experiment a peer-to-peer support system to encourage adoption of concrete solutions to the problem of serious violence and abuse of female athletes;
• Raise and submit a petition on the issue to the EU that is participated by citizens in the European Union.

INTELLECTUAL OUTPUTS:
• IO1 – Publication “State of the Art and Best Practices in Tackling Violence against Female Athletes”;
• IO2 – Toolkit “Strategies and Tools for Empowering Athletes”;
• IO3 – Training Course “The Crucial Role of Sports Professionals in Combating Abuse, Violence and Discrimination against Women in Sports”;
• IO4 – Model “A Centralized Peer-to-Peer Helpdesk Model for Female Athletes”;
• IO5 – European Petition “Enhancing Safety Measures for Female Athletes in Europe”.

The EWA project is co-funded under the Erasmus+ program of the European Union.

TC Sofia Bulgaria

Sport is a means of self-expression and realisation, as well as a force for citizenship and solidarity, while at the same time violence and discrimination against women still constitute insurmountable barriers to the establishment of women’s presence in our sports clubs.

Helpdesk Cyprus: SPAVO - CUT (Heraclitus) collaboration

"Heraclitus" research team (Cyprus University of Technology) and the Association for the Prevention and Handling of Violence in the Family (SPAVO) started a collaboration in the framework of EWA project for the promotion and utilization of the 1440 telephone support line that SPAVO already operates. Women athletes in Cyprus who face(d) sexual harassment or gender discrimination can refer to SPAVO for support.

Transnational meeting in Istanbul

More than one year within the project, the partners of EWA have finally met! From the 16th to the 18th of May, the Çatalca District Directorate of National Education hosted our first face-to-face meeting, during which the partners discussed the worked carried out so far and planned tasks to come in the next months. The meeting concluded with a visit to the Director of Education and Government. The next meeting will take place in this automn Athens.

ONLINE MEETING UNDER THE EWA PROJECT

On May 16 and 17, 2022, an international online meeting under the EWA – Empowering Women Athletes: Tackling Feminine Abuse, Violence and Discrimination in EU Sports Clubs project was held. During the meeting, the following topics were discussed: the completed and upcoming project activities, the prepared training materials and the training course on the role of sports professionals in combating violence and discrimination against women in sport Diyan Atanasov and Emilia Tsanova took part in the meeting on behalf of the Bulgarian sports development association.

Sport is a means of self-expression and fulfilment, as well as a force for citizenship and solidarity, while stressing how violence against women, stereotyping, differences in payment and barriers to women’s involvement in management are still problems tackling the sport sector.

Those barriers act on multiple levels (verbal, physical, sexual, emotional, psychological, social, cultural, organisational, economic, mediatic, etc.) and are collectively perceived as a pervasive chauvinist culture that permeates the career of any female athlete.

The EWA Project aims to counter abuse, violence and harassment against female athletes in EU Sports Clubs through a comprehensive approach that collects past and present efforts and forces against the problem in order to power up the overall sports management systems to take charge of it.

The innovative aspect of the project lies in the attempt of boosting the engagement of each single beneficiary in taking charge of the problem and supporting each other.

SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES:
• Catalyze social players and communities in Europe that already dealt with the issue around a comprehensive dialogue on the state of the art and next steps to take;
• Promote and innovative and multi-layered response to the problem tackled, maximizing and building on past experiences and creating new strategies and tools at EU level;
• Activate beneficiaries in Europe through a grass-roots awareness-rising campaign aiming at acknowledging and valorizing the role of women in sports;
• Produce and disseminate counter-narratives on women in sports though a social-media campaign;
• Test and assess a training and awareness raising campaign addressed to AERS (Ambassadors of Equal Rights in Sports) and sports professionals (coaches, tutors, managers, etc.);
• Experiment a peer-to-peer support system to encourage adoption of concrete solutions to the problem of serious violence and abuse of female athletes;
• Raise and submit a petition on the issue to the EU that is participated by citizens in the European Union.

INTELLECTUAL OUTPUTS:
• IO1 – Publication “State of the Art and Best Practices in Tackling Violence against Female Athletes”;
• IO2 – Toolkit “Strategies and Tools for Empowering Athletes”;
• IO3 – Training Course “The Crucial Role of Sports Professionals in Combating Abuse, Violence and Discrimination against Women in Sports”;
• IO4 – Model “A Centralized Peer-to-Peer Helpdesk Model for Female Athletes”;
• IO5 – European Petition “Enhancing Safety Measures for Female Athletes in Europe”.

EXPECTED OUTCOMES:
• Network of Beneficiaries: Spreading of empowerment and mutual support actions of female athletes of all ages;
• Education of Professionals: Exploitation of educational resources and courses for professionals that work with female athletes:

• Sports professionals: coaches, trainers, fitness coaches, sports clubs operators and executives, masseurs, tutors, sports scientists, talent scouts, agents, referees;

• Education professionals: physical education teachers, professional fitness coaches, mentors;

• Health professionals: nutritionists, psychologists, physiotherapists, psychomotor therapists;

• Media professionals: reporters;

• Security professionals: Attorney General of Sport

• Centralized Peer-to-Peer Helpdesk Testing;
• Formulation of a Petition on “Safety Measures for Female Athletes in Europe”.

The EWA project is co-funded under the Erasmus+ program of the European Union.

BSDA - CIVIC DEBATE GROUPS DISCUSSION

On 13 October 2021, a focus group on the project "EWA - Empowering Women Athletes: Tackling Feminine Abuse, Violence and Discrimination in EU Sports Clubs" was held at the National Sports Academy. The event focused on how sport can be used as a tool for self-expression and fulfilment, citizenship and solidarity and the challenges of violence and discrimination against women, which still represent a barrier to a more serious presence of women in our sports clubs. These barriers operate on multiple levels (verbal, physical, sexual, emotional, psychological, social, cultural, organizational, economic, mediational, etc.) and are collectively perceived as an overarching chauvinistic culture that permeates the career of every female athlete.

EWA Event

On 24 September 2021, at the National Sports Academy - Gurgulyat Building, a #BeInclusive event was held to exchange experiences in the field of adapted sports, presenting diverse practices, including the Erasmus+ supported EWA project.

The project aims to tackle abuse, violence and harassment targeting female athletes in EU sports clubs through a comprehensive approach that brings together past and present efforts and forces to combat this issue in order to strengthen the overall sport governance systems that address it.

The innovative aspect of the project lies in the attempt to strengthen the commitment of all individual beneficiaries by addressing the problem and supporting each other.

EWA event

On September 24, 2021, at the National Sports Academy, EWA event was held to exchange experiences in the field of adapted sports, featuring a variety of practices, including: adapted basketball in the NSA and Parakids Sports Practices.

A dedicated fund for professionalism in women’s sports has been established in italy

The decree establishing the Fund for professionalism in women's sports has been published in the Official Journal of the Italian Republic, with a total budget of 10.7 million euros available. Among the novelties there is also the chapter dedicated to the promotion of gender equality. From the labour and social security protections for all workers in the world of sport, to the rules for amateur sports associations and clubs, there are many innovations introduced by the provision: these include the creation of a Fund aimed at encouraging the professionalism of women's sports.

To access this fund, Italian National sports federations that intend to access the Fund must approve the transition to sports professionalism of women's championships: this must then take place definitively by December 31, 2022.

Furthermore, the legislative decree of 28 February 2021 provides that Italian Regions, the Autonomous Provinces and CONI (the Italian National Olympic Committee) undertake actions to promote gender equality at all levels and in every structure, favouring the inclusion of women in management and responsibility roles. The CONI will establish a regulation, to be issued by next summer, with guiding principles for the statutes of national sports federations, associated sports disciplines and meritorious associations.

Official link to the fund

Bulgaria accepts the New Strategy for Gender Equality

The Bulgarian government accepted the New Strategy for Gender Equality. The main goal of the document is to contribute for the equal opportunities in every aspect of the economy including sports and the value that it has on people’s lives.The strategy has five main pillars, all correlated and striving for the overcoming of stereotypes and discrimination.

Women's economic empowerment is a key prerequisite for achieving gender equality. The female participation in the economy mobilizes their potential and talent. It encourages their realization in all spheres of life.

Announcement of the event

Greece - "Woman Means…": Great online event

In Greece, the Athens Chamber of Commerce (ACC) and the Committee on Women Entrepreneurship of ACC on Monday, March 8, 2021, celebrated International Women's Day with a big online celebration entitled "Woman Means…".

The event was honoured with the participation of successful women from the politics, business, art, sports and social arena, but also with men who have offered a lot to women. Women had the chance to pass their strong message highlighting the multidimensional and decisive role of women, especially in this period. Women mean a lot to society and the economy, especially during the coronavirus pandemic. The event took place online via Zoom.

Announcement of the event

Belgium: The movement has already started

In Belgium, the #balancetonsport movement was launched on the 8th of March 2021, the International Women’s Rights Day, on the initiative of judokas Charline Van Snick and Lola Mansour. 

The first action consists in a compilation of video testimonials by professional and amateur female athletes denouncing violence they were subjected to in sport environments.

The videos are available (in French) on Charline Van Snick’s Facebook and Instagram pages and YouTube channel.

Article and video report by RTL (Belgium)

ewa-project.eu is online

Our project website is finally online! Browse it, share it and give us your feedback.