The 2023 edition of the EU Sport Forum was held in Stockholm, Sweden, on 2-3 May 2023 under the Swedish presidency of the Council of the EU.
With a strong representation, ENGSO actively participated in the event with ENGSO President Stefan Bergh being one of the panelists in the “Women in sport: from grassroots to leadership” discussion on day one.
This year’s forum had a particular focus on integrity, good governance and gender equality. The event also addressed the sustainability of sporting events, the importance of sport for physical and mental health, and skills and competences development of athletes and coaches. Additionally, the winners of the #BeInclusive EU Sport Awards were announced and we congratulate all finalists and winners for their outstanding initiatives in the field of inclusive sports.
The Forum began on Tuesday, 2 May, with welcome speeches from Mariya Gabriel, European Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth (video speech), Jakob Forssmed, Swedish Minister for Social Affairs and Public Health, and Tomasz Frankowski, Member of the European Parliament.
The opening was followed by the high-level panel discussion “Women in sport: from grassroots to leadership” in which ENGSO President Stefan Bergh highlighted the importance of gender balances, at all levels of sport – from grassroots to leadership, in order for sport organisations and club to work and perform better.
Other ENGSO representatives included the Honorary President Birgitta Kervinen, ENGSO ExCom member Magnus Svedrup, ENGSO EU Advisory Committee chair Theo Neyenhuis, ENGSO Officer Director Marie Denitton and ENGSO Policy and Coordination Officer Elisabeth Strobach.
ENGSO Youth, including the Chair Ugnė Chmeliauskaite, Policy Manager Tiago Guilherme and Young Delegate Tabea Werner, joined the #HealthyLifestyle4all Youth Ideas Lab initiative for the second year in a row, through which they had the opportunity to moderate the session “Innovative youth voices in sport: what’s in it for you?” and share the youth perspectives on healthy lifestyle for all.
This year, the forum also included info sessions on the SHARE funding and European Week of Sport.