TOC hosts NOCs for GAMES Project meeting focused on promoting women leadership in sport
The meeting of the Guidance to Achieve More Equal Leadership in Sport (GAMES) Project was held by the Turkish Olympic Committee (TOC) at its Olympic House on 16-17 January with the aim of increasing the participation of women in leadership and management positions in sport.
The GAMES Project is funded by the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union and held under the leadership of the EOC European Union (EU) Bureau. A total of 18 representatives from the National Olympic Committees of Türkiye, Germany, Belgium, Czech Republic, Ireland, Northern Macedonia, Latvia and Greece, as well as the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the expert organizations “Equal Rights in Sports” and “I Trust Sport” attended the meeting. From Turkey, Prof. Dr. Canan Koca Arıtan, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Association of Sports and Physical Activity for Women (KASFAD) took part in the meeting.
The first day started with the opening speeches of Folker Hellmund, EOC EU Bureau Director and TOC Secretary General Neşe Gündoğan. Following the presentation of the current developments in the GAMES Project by Carlotta Giussiani, Project Manager, a session was organized in which the “Action Pool” document, which had been prepared previously, was finalized. Accordingly, 23 Key Actions and 15 Additional Actions were identified under the main headings of “Structural Measures”, “Pathways to Women’s Empowerment” and “Culture”. The first day’s work ended with a briefing by Carlotta Giussiani on the Project’s “good governance online tool”.
The second day of the meeting started with a discussion on the “National Action Plans” to be prepared by the participating Committees within the scope of the Project and how they can be formed. FIBA Europe Women in Basketball and Special Projects Project Manager Elisabeth Cebrian-Scheurer made a presentation on FIBA’s activities to increase the number of women athletes, coaches, fans, managers and employees. Prof. Dr. Canan Koca Arıtan made a presentation on UN Women’s “Gender Responsive Institution Guide”, which provides a roadmap for sports institutions to implement gender-sensitive practices and support women and girls’ empowerment in and through sports.
The meeting ended with the closing speeches of Folker Hellmund, Neşe Gündoğan and Şükran Albayrak.
Project partner NOCs are expected to prepare their national action plans by determining the “Actions” that they can implement in line with their own country conditions and to implement them after presenting them at the third Consortium Meeting to be held in Greece on 22-24 May 2023.
