Initial Information of the project

Project Summary

The vision of this project is to build the bridge and provide the opportunity for disabled people to better integrate into the community through wheelchair basketball, in an effort to increase the inclusion of disabled in sports, which is one of the main objectives of ERASMUS+ SPORTS projects, aiming to promote equal opportunities and to face discrimination. As part of the activities of the partner organisations for the promotion and equality of people, the promotion of non-formal education, the integration of young people into society, the reduction and elimination of social exclusion, marginalization, social discrimination, racism and inequalities that exist today in the European society, and mainly, in order to increase and enhance social inclusion and autonomy of Europeans, our Organisation decided to apply for the Erasmus+ Sport (small scale partnership) the project "Inclusion of disabled people through basketball" which focuses on the inclusion of disabled people in sports and especially those who play basketball in wheelchairs.

The overall objectives for the project are as follows:

Introduce the knowledge of wheelchair basketball.
Increase the participation of people with disabilities in wheelchair basketball.
Improve participants' health and well-being.
The players become role models and inspire other interested people to take up sports.
Engage and educate more people in the partners' countries in wheelchair basketball,
Increase the amount of wheelchair basketball teams in each participating country in the project and in all the MSs through dissemination,
Promote inclusion through getting involved in different ways in wheelchair basketball.
Exchange good practises in wheelchair basketball.
Promote international cooperation networks through wheelchair basketball, as a tool for enhancement of values and citizenship of the people, and strengthen the feeling of positive EU identity.

The direct beneficiaries will be the 20 young people who will participate in the training, who will carry what they learned in the project in future activities, helping to the long term learning process of other people.
The indirect beneficiaries are people who are interested in wheelchair basketball, and other organisations who want to make similar initiatives, the friends and families of the participants in the training, people who follow the organisations involved in the project on social media, the local partners.

Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). Neither the European Union nor EACEA can be held responsible for them.

Why Sports?

Sport plays a vital role for millions of Europeans, as it contributes to the well-being of people, develops socializing skills, inter-human relationships and connections and it enhances the European identity, which is governed (among others) by democracy and inclusiveness. Therefore, we consider sport as a special tool of non-formal learning that contributes to the physical and mental well-being of the individuals in the community that they belong to.

What About Europe?

Under Article 26 of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights, it is underlined that 'the EU recognises and respects the right of persons with disabilities to benefit from measures designed to ensure their independence, social and occupational integration and participation in the life of the community'. Among their rights is that of practising disability sports. The term 'disability sports' is used as an umbrella to describe sports activities developed for the benefit of people or athletes with disabilities. However, the opportunities of disabled people to get involved with sports are still limited.

Vision of the project

Therefore, while the EU promotes equal opportunities for disability sports, there is the need to encourage active participation in disabled sports against stereotypes and prejudices. The vision of this project is to build the bridge and provide the opportunity for disabled people to better integrate into the community through wheelchair basketball, in an effort to increase the inclusion of disabled in sports, which is one of the main objectives of ERASMUS+ SPORTS projects, aiming to promote equal opportunities and to face discrimination.

Partnership

Regarding the project partnership, four partner organisations from the EU (Cyprus, Romania, Greece, Serbia.) will be involved in this project. It is a mixed group of partners, all experienced in Erasmus + projects. While the organisations from Romania is experienced in Erasmus + sports projects, the organisation from Cyprus is experienced in Erasmus + projects in the field of discrimination and inclusion. While the organisation of Greece possesses extensive experience on the topic of wheelchair basketball and generally in disabled sports, and the organisation from Serbia, which is experienced with basketball and basketball for disabled. Therefore some partners work mainly in the field of sports (among others) while the others work in the field of youth and social inclusion. All of them will cooperate in the perspective of contributing to the enhancement of equal opportunities and education in and through sports, especially through wheelchair basketball. Apollon Limassol Wheelchair Basketball will be engaged as stakeholders for the co-design and implementation of IDPTB, for an effective inclusive response through wheelchair basketball. In general, stakeholders, experienced people in the field of wheelchair basketball, coaches, players, staff and volunteers will contribute to the project by carrying out the trainings and implementing relevant activities. The partners will complement each other and will prepare brochures, organize awareness and dissemination events in local communities, while the Cyprus partner will organise a TPM and a big wheelchair basketball game/ tournament.

What statistics say?

Recent surveys by Eurostat indicate that over 40% of the EU population practise sport, fitness or recreational physical activities at least once a week. There is no percentage available concerning the participation of disabled people in sport in the EU. However, the available data by Eurobarometer survey of 2018 shows that having a disability or illness is the third most frequently mentioned reason - by 14% of respondents - for not practising sports more regularly. Therefore, the importance of inclusion of disabled in sports arises from the fact that a billion people in the world, of whom over 70 million in the EU, live with disabilities today. These people experience lesser participation in many activities than people without disabilities and they have less opportunities in their daily life, sports included. Such barriers in sports concerning disabled people need to be extinguished, in order to promote the inclusion of these people in sports.

What about our organisations?

As part of the activities of the partner organisations for the promotion and equality of people, the promotion of non-formal education, the integration of young people into society, the reduction and elimination of social exclusion, marginalization, social discrimination, racism and inequalities that exist today in the European society, and mainly, in order to increase and enhance social inclusion and autonomy of Europeans, our Organisation decided to apply for the Erasmus+ Sport (small scale partnership) the project "Inclusion of disabled people

through basketball" which focuses on the inclusion of disabled people in sports and especially those who play basketball in wheelchairs.

European Green Deal - Preserving Europe's natural environment - Sustainable mobility

Throughout the whole project we want to adopt an environmental approach, find and implement solutions that are eco-friendly regarding the use of materials, type of materials, reducing food waste during the activities and more importantly, using alternative methods for transport. We want to replace airplane transport with train, bus and car sharing. Accordingly, all the partners will identify the best option in order to travel safely, comfortably and with low impact on the environment.