BMX: Meeting #2 15.04.2021.

On the 15th April 2021, the ccordinator of the BMX Training to Win project USJ held the second meeting. It covered the following issues:
  • Welcoming partners and new associated partners.
  • Management: monitoring processes.
  • Project identity: logo, web, social net profiles.
  • IO1: Needs Questionnaire: design and procedures.
  • IO2: Battery Test proposal.
  • Portugal stage: Google Forms results and Seminar.
  • Visibility: dissemination, country Ambassadors.

It was decided that the Battery test will be held in September in Anadia, Portugal during 6th and 10th Septemebr right after the BMX European Cup 2021 that will be held during 4th - 5th September. This will be a good opportunity to make the Battery test wider with more BMX riders in different age groups includin Elite riders. Such an opportunity shall give a value added to the project outputs and dissemination activities.

Furthermore, the project members were to point their project ambassadors - BMX athletes that would promote the project results in difefrent media and give speeches during the Battery Test, which is the first Multiplier Sport Event. The team of Latvia, consisting of the manager Sandija Zalupe, researchers Olafs Lakucs and Ivo Lakucs and a technician Līga Dzene, has pointed the following project ambassadors:

Kristens Krīgers, an active rider, who after the Olympics will join coach team as well.
Līva Lizete Glāzere, an active junior rider.
Edvards Glāzers, an Elite rider, and
Mikus Dāvids Strazdiņš, another Elite rider.

SWoSt Meeting #5_08.04.2021.

A Day before the monthly meeting of SWOST team, the WP2 team met in a separate meeting to prepare a report for the rest of the SWOST team. The main idea of the work for the report was focusing on the gender equality supplementing ideas of two more projects that are now active: TWOST and FREACO, that makes a total of 22 partners of the 3 projects.

The aims:
1.To identify all the scientific researches and the possible outcomes of similar projects (i.e., good practices) already realized in the EU context on gender stereotypes in sport and,
2.To combine all the positive previous experiences with an aimed standardized methodological approach. One of the good examples already discovered during the preparation of the project proposal is the project ALL IN: Towards gender balance in sport.
3.To define a gender stereotype as the first methodological step. In order to define the gender stereotype, it is necessary to:

  • Define ‘gender’, then
  • Define ‘gender identity’, after
  • Define ‘gender stereotypes’, and finally
  • Define ‘gender stereotypes in SWOST’.

In order to achieve the stated aims, a discussion on the Initial Version of the SWOST WP2 Methodology was encouraged:

  • UNIVR will share an initial version (to present during our next monthly SWOST online meeting in May)
  • VUB, CSCS, ILEPS, UNIVERSITY OF MONTENEGRO, Lapland University of Applied Sciences will review it
  • It will be focused on evaluating and contrasting gender-based stereotypes in sport
  • This will be our initial step to develop the methodology
  • All partners’ involvement is warmly welcome!

SWoSt Local Meeting #3 26.03.2021

The day after the second local meeting among all LSIIDP members, local project SWOST members Sandija Zalupe and Kaspars Saknins held another local meeting to on hot feet not to lose any of the urgent information. Documents LSIIDP SWOST team members dealt with were the following:

1.Research on "Dzimuma aspekta ietekmes analīzes valsts un pašvaldības budžeta procesos" (Eng. 'Gender Impact Analysis in State and Local Government Budget Processes') 2017 that concern also gender equality issues relating sport - to be further worked on and the abstract reported to the WP2 leader and the project coordinator.

2.
Video on "Dzimumu līdztiesība sportā: Vai vīriešu sporta veidi medijos ir redzamāki nekā sieviešu?" (Eng. Gender Equality in Sport: Are Men's Sports More Visible in the Media than Women's?) 2017 dealing with the current situation not only in Latvia, but also in Lithuania.

3.Article on "Sieviete sporta pasaulē — stereotipu laušana" (Eng. "A Woman in the World of Sports - Breaking Stereotypes') 2017 interviewing ex-president of the biggest sport federations of Latvia - Athletics.

4.Article on "Sievietes sportā: seksisms, vienlīdzība vai godīgums?" (Eng. 'Women in Sport: Sexism, Equality or Fairness?') 2018 dealing with concerns about sexism in tennis and beach volleyball.

5.Statistics on "Dzimumu līdztiesības rādītāji Centrālā statistikas pārvalde" (Eng. 'Gender Equality Indicators') 2019 from Central Statistical Bureau regarding six main fields: education, employment, social security, authority, violence, health. Learning the data of authority regarding the proportion of elected women and men in Saeima of Latvia, it is more than twice as much for men, which is also observed among sport functionaries of Latvia.

6.
Research on "Dzimumu līdztiesības principu īstenošana Latvijas pašvaldībās" (Eng. 'Implementation of Gender Equality Principles in Local Governments of Latvia') 2003, among different facts regarding gender equality in sport recognizing the promotion of a sporty lifestyle associated only with the lifestyle and health of one sex - men.

7.
Research on "Dzimumu līdztiesības principu integrēšana mācību grāmatās" (Eng. 'Gender Mainstreaming in Textbooks') 2005, identifying unequal demands in school sport lessons between girls and boys in elementary grades.

8.Project Erasmus+ Sport (579709-PPE-1-2016-2-EL-SPO-SCP) "Godīga spēle un gandarījums sportā" (Eng. 'Fair Play and Happiness through Sports') 2017, with the project partners: Latvia, Italy, Bulgaria, Romania, Greece. The Latvian language guide identifies that gender equality in sport is directly linked to gender hierarchies in society. One point that especially needs the attention of coaches is the risk of creating stereotypes between men's and women's sports activities, when boys choose to participate in so-called "women's" sports (eg.skating, gymnastics). Something similar is happening with girls, who feel a strong call for "men's sports" (eg.football, martial arts).

9.Qualitative research on "Iedzīvotāju izpratne un attieksme pret dzimumu līdztiesības jautājumiem" (Eng. 'Comprehension and Attitude of Citizens towards Gender Equality Issues') 2001, regarding education field and recognizing "athletes boys" and unfair attitude towards women's heptathlon and men's decathlon.

10. Video on "Salauzt stereotipu" (Eng. 'Break a Stereotype') 2021, where a well-known Latvian woman coach of Freestyle Wrestling. She says: "I want to break the stereotype that only boys can wrestle. Girls also can. Freestyle Wrestling develops strength, endurance, dexterity, flexibility, coordination, character and discipline. It is also necessary for women and girls," a Freestyle Wrestling Coach Irina Petrova from Daugavpils is confident."

11. Research on "Gender Equality in the Media" 2021, where ITF examines sports gender equality across the media and social media, commissioned as part of its ITF’s Advantage All gender equality strategy. Findings reveal clear differences in the way male and female players are portrayed.

12. Article on "COVID-19, women, girls and sport: Build back better" 2020, revealing that impacts of COVID-19 are already being felt harder by women and girls in many areas of life due to gender inequalities, and this is mirrored in sport. It presents key recommendations to different actors in the sport ecosystem so that women and girls’ gains in sport are not lost.

13. Work Group of the Minsitry of Education and Science on a reasearch of "Sporta finansēšanas modeļa pilnveide" (Eng. 'Improvement of Sports Financing Model' of Latvia) 2021, covering also an issue of equality. Federations should be considered as the basic unit in national sport and, given the large number of recognized federations, special care should be taken to ensure equal opportunities for all. Yet the gathered research data do not show the equality. This Working Group continues to work on the development and implementation of this study.

RSE: Remote Running Competition 12.-30.04.2021

LSIIDP in cooperation with the Olympic Center "Limbaži" within the project RSE: Restart Sport Engine in EU organizes remote running competition from April 12 to April 30 this year, when everyone can run the distance at his or her convenience, under the program Strava in the relevant segment HERE.

Additionally, children and youth from Limbaži and Salacgrīva Regional School of Sport have an opportunity to participate in the competition in another category by collecting the run kilometers under the program Strava in any place in the same period of time.

The project aims to develop sporting skills of at least 800 people in 5 European countries in a 12-months period and to restart the sport engine through physical activity and return to at the least pre-pandemic level. In order to promote the project and boost up the dissemination of the results, we have attracted the project ambassador - Olympian, kayaker Kristaps Zalupe, who will not only join the runners in the distance, but also in the awards ceremony.

The activity is disseminated through LSIIDP homepage, LSIIDP Facebook profile, Olympic Centre homepage, Olympic Centre Limbazi Facebook profile and project ambassador's Facebook profile.


SWoSt Local Meeting #2 25.03.2021

On the 25th March LSIIDP held a local meeting among its members. There were two main aims for this meeting:
  • to find out if any of LSIIDP members have inner documents balancing genders to have no stereotypes in sport, and
  • to share knowledge and experience among LSIIDP members to identify any other documents among EU Member States in relation to gender stereotypes in sport.
The meeting was fruitful, and the whole LSIIDP team managed to bring together several materials worth working on further in order to present them to the SWOST coordinator and the WP2 leader prior discussing them between the Latvian SWOST team.