PROJECT PARTNERS
Hanze University of Applied Sciences
VeiligheidNL
HEPA Europe
European Network of Sport Education
Lithuanian Basketball Federation
VU Brussel
University of Oradea
International Council for Coaching Excellence
Royal Dutch Football Association
FUNDING
Erasmus+
BACKGROUND
Sport is an important aspect of social and cultural life in the European Union, and it is deeply embedded in Europe’s societies with some 300 million people regularly enjoying sport. Engaging in sport is one of the ways of being physically active and the sports movement has great influence on the level of health- enhancing physical activity of European citizens. This is why the European Commission made health- enhancing physical activity a cornerstone of its sport-related activities and policies from the very beginning. But participation in sports is not only recognized as a tool to stay healthy; it promotes social and educational values, and it has the potential to promote cohesion in societies and social inclusion.
But although the World Health Organisation identified that physical inactivity is the fourth leading risk factor for death globally and is responsible for 5-10% of deaths in the WHO European Region , and efforts to promote sport participation have been stepped up in some EU Member States, rates of physical inactivity across the EU still remain unacceptably high: the majority of citizens still does not engage in sufficient physical activity, with 60% never or seldom exercising.
One reason for non-participation in and drop-out from sports and physical education is sports related injuries. Where especially knee and ankle injuries contribute to this problem. Therefore, the project MOVE HEALTHY: Improving Health and Sustaining Participation of Youngsters in Sports around Europe seeks to develop free-of-charge education material to effectively support sport coaches and physical educators around Europe to prevent primary lower extremity injuries of the youngsters participating in their sport trainings and PE classes.
For it, MOVE HEALTHY seeks to develop an innovative, ICT based approach with external focus visual and verbal instructions and feedback on the movement effect which is based on the implicit motor learning theory. It is intended that the consortium develops – by the process of co- creation with sport coaches and physical education (PE) teachers – functional sports exercises that can be offered and will be integrated in real world sport training and physical education sessions. With it, the project directly contributes to an improved sharing of good practices and develops innovative instruments in order to lower the risks of injuries and enhance sports participation.
OBJECTIVES
The objective is to impact on the motor behaviour of the youngsters, as well as to change the training and attitudinal behaviours of the sport coaches and PE teachers. The ultimate goal of the MOVE HEALTHY project is that the youngsters can enjoy a lifelong, healthy sport participation.