On the occasion of the “European Crossroads: Sport
- Front Door to Democracy” event more than 120 representatives from the field
of sport, governmental and non-governmental delegates, public sport authorities
and active sportsmen debate their visions of sport as a civil movement.
Sport organisations constitute small democratic societies and are also a part of
civil society as a whole. Major objectives of the expert conference, taking place
from the 13 to 14 of May are to raise awareness of the value of sport as a tool for
education in democratic citizenship and provide examples of good practice all
over Europe.
The role sport organisations play as an arena for the development
of social skills and social integration of young people and young adults are key
questions. Athletes, coaches and sport administrators directly involved in active
sports as well as young sport leaders contribute their rich personal experiences.
The European Crossroads conference is organized by the Council of Europe,
Directorate of Youth and Sport - Sport Department, the Youth Policy and Education
Division, the Committee for the Development of Sport (CDDS) and the National
Ambassadors for Sport, Tolerance and Fair Play. In co-operation with the
European Commission, the European Non-Governmental Sports Organisation
(ENGSO) and the City of Strasbourg, the pan-European event offers participants
from a variety of sporting backgrounds the opportunity to share their knowledge
and experiences from diverse fields of sport.
Beside the theory of sport as a great social movement, European Crossroads
participants are invited to enjoy the spirit of sport though physical activity, multicultural
exchange and fun during the “Courses de Strasbourg-Europe”. Running
distances of semi-marathon, 10 km or 5 km are to be accomplished as well as
roller courses. From 17 to 23 May the European Crossroads opens its doors to
the public and runs an far reaching informational campaign in an circus tent promoting
the uniqueness of sports.
The European Crossroads is one of the EU-wide projects co-financed by the
European Commission Directorate-General Education and Culture within the
framework of EYES. The European Union has designed 2004 as the “European
Year of Education through Sport”. An accompanying information, image and experience-
oriented campaign of the European Commission promotes sport and its
various social, cultural and, above all educational functions in all 25 EU Member
States, as well as in the EFTA states Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein. In
2004, approximately 150 projects at local, regional, national, transnational or
community-wide level are supported. Raising the awareness of the European
public to the importance of sport in an educational context as well as increasing
the significance of physical activities in school curricula are the main objectives of
the EYES campaign.
The European Year of Education through Sport (EYES 2004) directly addresses
the sport authorities, European umbrella sport organisations and institutions. EU
Commissioner for Education and Culture and patron of the European Year of
Education through Sport, Viviane Reding highlights the significance of sport organisations:
“Promoting the social and educational values of sport during the European Year
of Education through Sport depends to a great extent on the support of these
encounters since they function as effective catalysts in the process of establishing
a partnership between the world of education and sport. Beside the more
than two million people that are involved in sport throughout Europe on a voluntary
basis, voluntary helpers in around 700,000 sports clubs ensure that the principle
“sport for all” applies every day to all citizens. I therefore appeal to all players,
coaches and decision-makers in the world of sport and at the competent
public institutions to stay and become proactively involved and create new ideas
for making sport a great experience for all European citizens.”
