Velika Gorica in the colors of Life Champions

Consortium of the project “Creating Life Champions”, led by coordinator Aleksandra Knežević, visited Velika Gorica (Croatia) on March 31, as part of a regional tour that is realized with the support of the UEFA Foundation for Children.

Young athletes, parents and coaches of HNK Gorica, a long-term partner and member of the Life Champions consortium, got to know first-hand all the plans until the end of 2023, this time with premier information about the first gathering of coaches this year.

“The first two info days focused on international camps for children as a unique educational and sports experience that our concept brings, but today we have emphasized that this year we will pay special attention to work with coaches, because they are the main link of the process and the persons whose impact on children and young people is immeasurable. Through planned gatherings, our young pedagogues and educators in sports will acquire a set of additional knowledge and skills so that through daily sports training with young people, they can open up a number of other topics of vital importance, all of which are present in sports as well – such as gender equality, respect for human rights, solidarity and fair play, ecological awareness and preservation of the planet Earth”, said Aleksandra Knežević at the end of the Info Day.

During the meeting, the present were introduced with the video material from previous joint activities, as a reminder of all the educational, sports, cultural and entertainment activities with which we connected the region during 2021. In addition, members of the consortium from Velika Gorica addressed them as well – Marko Radanić, sports project coordinator for Croatia and Goran Beus Richembergh, an expert in the field of human rights in sports, sharing their own experiences and impressions on this unique concept.

The full hall unequivocally showed the readiness and desire of those present to participate in all activities to follow, and to contribute to spreading the word about them with positive stories, both in the territory of their city and country, and beyond, with unique messages about the importance of regional cooperation, especially when it comes to sports and learning, socializing and connecting through sports.

Info days are realized with the aim of familiarizing general public with the concept, messages and planned activities as part of the project “Creating Life Champions” with the support of the UEFA Foundation for Children. The next two are planned in North Macedonia and Montenegro.