European Week of Sport Seminar Series Concludes with Free Access to Recordings, Summaries and Federation Materials

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We are pleased to publish the session summaries, recordings, presentations, and supporting materials from the European Week of Sport (EWOS) Seminar Series, organised by the European Sports for All Union (UESPT) and the International Sports for All Federation. The publication of this material allows all interested organisations, federations, National Olympic Committees, ministries, schools, and sport-for-all stakeholders to follow the sessions on demand and free of charge.

With this release, the EWOS Seminar Series formally concludes. The series brought together 110 registered participants across four online sessions, involving 14 international sports organisations and creating a valuable platform for exchange, cooperation, and the promotion of sport for all worldwide.

The seminar series was designed not only to present different sports and international federations, but also to create a common space where organisations could share experiences, identify good practices, and explore opportunities for future cooperation. Throughout the sessions, speakers demonstrated how sport can contribute to health, inclusion, education, community development, gender equality, safeguarding, and international understanding.

https://youtu.be/RYllXGpG0F0

The audience reflected the breadth of the global sport movement, including National Olympic Committees, ministries of sport and national sports authorities, sport-for-all organisations, international and national federations, universities, academics, coaches, and athletes. This diverse participation confirmed the growing interest in practical models that make sport more accessible to people of all ages, abilities, and backgrounds.

All session recordings are now available so that participants and wider audiences can follow each seminar in deferred viewing, at a time convenient to them. The recordings are accompanied by the official session summaries, the speakers’ presentations, and the additional materials made available by the participating federations.

This material is published free of charge and can be accessed below this press release. It is intended to support National Olympic Committees, ministries, national federations, schools, universities, community organisations, and sport-for-all activists in developing new programmes, building partnerships, and adapting successful practices to their local contexts.

We thank all speakers, participating federations, moderators, technical staff, and registered participants for their contribution to this initiative. Their presentations and experiences now remain available as a practical resource for the entire international sport-for-all community.

All session videos, summaries, presentations, and federation materials are available free of charge below this press release.

Videos of the Sessions

Video Seminar — Session 1

Union Internationale de Pentathlon Moderne
Shiny Fang, UIPM Secretary General
Fédération Internationale de Savate
Julie Gabriel, FISavate President and AIMS Vice-President
International Fistball Association
Gastão Englert, IFA President

https://youtu.be/72zwhA2PAfU

Video Seminar — Session 2

International Federation of Sleddog Sports
Agata Aleksandra Zaremba, IFSS Vice-President for Development
International Mind Sports Association
Geoffrey Borg, IMSA CEO
World Armwrestling Federation
Mircea Simionescu-Simicel, WAF General Secretary
Confédération Mondiale des Activités Subaquatiques
Angeliki Giannakaki, CMAS Sports Director

https://youtu.be/_y-NxDW31Ng

Video Seminar — Session 3

ITTF Foundation
Mayssa Bsaibes, Table Tennis for ALL Coordinator
Ju-Jitsu International Federation
Joachim Thumfart, JJIF General Director and IWGA Board Member
Fédération Internationale de Teqball
Laszlo Vajda, FITEQ Secretary General

https://youtu.be/edWtnKVa_QQ

Video Seminar — Session 4

Federation of International Bandy
Attila Adamfi, FIB Vice-President and General Secretary
World Flying Disc Federation
Robert “Nob” Rauch, WFDF President, ARISF and IWGA Board Member
Fédération Mondiale du Jeu de Dames
Carlo Bordini, EXCO Member and International Relations Manager of FMJD, and President of the EDC
International Esports Federation
Vlad Marinescu, IESF President

https://youtu.be/T7bjhQtVieI

Summary of the Sessions

Seminar Summary — Session 1

The opening session of the European Week of Sport seminar series, organised by the European Sports for All Union (UESPT) and the International Sports for All Federation (FISPT), brought together international federations, National Olympic Committees, ministries of sport, Olympic academies, and sport-for-all organisations to share models for making sport more accessible, inclusive, and sustainable. Around 74 participants registered, with strong representation from Africa, Asia, Europe, and the Pacific.

The seminar aimed to help international member federations present their sports to key national stakeholders—particularly NOCs and ministries of sport—and to encourage new partnerships, membership development, and local activities. Each speaker presented for 20 minutes, followed by a short question-and-answer session; questions were collected in the chat to avoid interrupting the recorded presentations.

UIPM: Modern Pentathlon for All

Shiny Fang, Secretary General of the International Modern Pentathlon Union (UIPM), described how modern pentathlon has evolved from an elite, five-day Olympic format into a faster, more accessible sport. Key reforms included reducing the competition to 90 minutes, introducing laser shooting, combining shooting and running into the Laser Run, shortening swimming, changing fencing to an elimination format, and replacing horse riding with obstacle racing

She explained that these changes were guided by four principles: accessibility, universality, understandability, and attractiveness. UIPM positioned obstacle racing and school- and community-based formats as practical ways to introduce pentathlon in parks, gyms, schools, and stadiums, including in countries without established infrastructure.

FISav: Savate as an Inclusive Sport

Julie Gabriel, President of the International Savate Federation (FISav), presented Savate—also known as French boxing—as a sport for people from childhood to older adulthood. She outlined its three main disciplines: Asso, a technical and controlled form of kicking and punching; Combat, a full-contact discipline; and Canne de Combat, a French stick-fighting discipline

The presentation emphasised adapted formats for wheelchair users, mixed-gender teams, fair play, independent officiating, transparent governance, safeguarding, and anti-doping compliance. FISav also highlighted outreach initiatives such as “Sunday for Savate” in India and an international online competition that attracted 250 entries from 40 countries using only smartphones and internet access.

Gabriel noted that Savate is practised in more than 100 countries and has more than 80 recognised national member federations.

IFA: Fistball in Brazilian Public Schools

Gastão Englert, President of the International Fistball Association (IFA), focused on a Brazilian public-school programme rather than on the sport itself. He explained that fistball follows a volleyball-like dynamic but uses one-arm contacts and a bounce between touches, making it adaptable to large and small spaces.

The programme’s central principle was to bring the sport to where children already are—public schools—rather than expecting them to join clubs. It trained physical-education teachers as multipliers, introduced simplified small-sided formats, organised school “Olympics” twice a year, and created pathways from schools to local fistball clubs.

Englert reported that the programme reached 13 cities, more than 90 schools, over 400 physical-education teachers, and approximately 800 students continuously engaged in fistball. He also cited improved school performance among participating students and presented the initiative as a contribution to health, inclusion, cooperation, self-esteem, and the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

Seminar Summary — Session 2

The second session of the European Week of Sport webinar series, hosted by the European Sports for All Union (UESPT) with FISPT, presented four international federations working in very different fields: sled dog sport, mind sports, underwater activities, and arm wrestling. The session aimed to create a common platform for organisations to exchange good practices, explore cooperation, and identify how their disciplines can contribute to participation, inclusion, education, and community development.

IFSS: Sledgedog Sport

Agata Aleksandra Zaremba, Vice President for Development of the International Federation of Sledgedog Sports (IFSS), presented sled dog sport under the message “Be active, be outdoor, be together.” She stressed that participation does not need to begin with competition: it can start with a person, a dog, suitable footwear, and a safe outdoor space, before progressing through local clubs, national races, and optionally international events.

The sport includes dryland disciplines such as canicross, bikejoring, dog scooter, and rig racing, as well as snow disciplines including skijoring and sled racing with teams of two to twelve dogs. IFSS offers pathways from age 12 nationally and age 14 internationally, with no upper age limit; athletes over 60 remain active in masters categories.

Zaremba emphasised that the dog is an athlete and partner, not equipment, and that welfare, trust, communication, and shared responsibility are central to the sport. IFSS also conducts anti-doping programmes for both human and canine athletes and began a partnership with the International Testing Agency in 2026.

IMSA: Mind Sports

Geoffrey Borg, CEO of the International Mind Sports Association (IMSA), explained that IMSA is an umbrella body for nine disciplines: chess, bridge, draughts, Go, Xiangqi, Mahjong, card games, esports, and poker, with backgammon currently an observer member. He highlighted chess as the largest member sport, with FIDE representing 204 national federations, while esports has around 140 national federations but faces governance complexity because game producers control many titles.

Borg presented mind sports as tools for cognitive development, self-confidence, discipline, time management, strategic thinking, and healthy ageing. He noted that mind sports can be introduced from ages 5–10, are language-independent, and can be delivered in schools, prisons, refugee camps, and UN-related programmes.

IMSA also highlighted inclusion initiatives, including its third Olympiad for Players with Disabilities, which involved around 40 teams. Key development projects include a learning portal targeting 1.5 million schools and 250 million children in India, and an Italian draughts programme involving 70,000 children in online training with certification linked to university credits.

CMAS: Underwater Activities

Angeliki Giannakaki, Sports Director of the World Underwater Federation (CMAS), described CMAS’s three-pillar structure: sport, technical standards and diving safety, and scientific research and aquatic conservation. Its sports portfolio includes finswimming, freediving, mermaiding, orienteering, spearfishing, sport diving, underwater hockey, underwater rugby, and underwater visual arts.

CMAS identified snorkelling, finswimming, mermaiding, sport diving, and underwater visual activities as its strongest entry points for sport for all. Snorkelling requires only basic equipment; finswimming builds water confidence and supports drowning-prevention education; mermaiding combines play, imagination, and aquatic skills; and pool-based sport diving reduces geographic and economic barriers associated with open-water diving.

CMAS joined the World Sport for All family in mid-2026 and is still developing its strategy. It also has active para pathways in para finswimming, para freediving, and para visual disciplines, although it identified classification and rule adaptation—not athlete interest—as the main challenge.

WAF: Arm Wrestling

Mircea Simionescu-Simicel, General Secretary of the World Armwrestling Federation (WAF), presented arm wrestling as a low-cost, simple, and highly accessible sport requiring no specialised equipment. Founded in 1977, WAF now has more than 99 national member federations across all continents.

The sport offers categories for children, juniors, seniors, and masters aged over 40, 50, 60, and 70. WAF has developed para armwrestling over roughly 30 years, includes athletes with physical, hearing, and visual impairments, and is bidding for inclusion in the Brisbane 2032 Paralympic Games.

WAF also cited its participation in Romania’s Be Active programme, its cooperation with the Olympic Channel, membership of AIMS and FISU, WADA Code compliance, and its recent joining of FISPT in 2026.

Seminar Summary — Session 3

The third session of the European Week of Sport seminar series, organised by the European Sports for All Union (UESPT) and the International Sports for All Federation (FISPT), featured presentations from the Jiu-Jitsu International Federation (JJIF), the ITTF Foundation, and the International TeqballFederation (FITEQ). The session explored how federations can combine competitive sport with inclusion, education, health, safeguarding, and community development.

JJIF: Jiu-Jitsu for All

Joachim Thumfart “Joe”, General Director of JJIF and IWGA Board Member, explained that the federation represents all major styles and disciplines of jiu-jitsu rather than restricting itself to one competitive system. JJIF structures its work around three pillars: traditional martial arts and Bushido values, competition sport, and self-protection.

He noted that an estimated 98% of JJIF’s global members participate outside the international competition circuit, mainly for enjoyment, fitness, well-being, and self-defence. The federation therefore offers a wide range of formats, including the DUO System, Fighting Jiu-Jitsu, Ne-Waza/Submission Grappling, Shoji Jitsu, Contact Jiu-Jitsu, Para Jiu-Jitsu, and Inclusive Self-Defence.

JJIF also presented its Jiu-Jitsu for Good social programmes: Not With Me for violence prevention among children, Guardian Girls International for preventing gender-based violence, and Fight to Protect in the Philippines, which supports the rehabilitation of child survivors of sexual abuse and exploitation.

To make competition more accessible, JJIF uses belt- and experience-based categories in open events, reducing the risk of beginners facing elite athletes and removing higher-risk techniques at lower experience levels. It has also introduced gender-open categories in technical self-defence events and inclusive formats allowing athletes with and without impairments to participate together.

ITTF Foundation: Table Tennis for Social Change

Mayssa Bsaibes, World Table Tennis Day Coordinator at the ITTF Foundation, distinguished between sport development—improving facilities, coaches, athletes, and competitions—and sport for development, which uses sport to address wider social challenges such as confidence, social skills, and belonging. The Foundation is an independent NGO that uses table tennis to contribute to the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

The Foundation has reached more than 350,000 people across 150 countries and territories. Its three core programmes are TT4ALL, focused on accessibility and inclusion; TT for Health, focused on physical, mental, and social health, including people living with neurodegenerative conditions; and the Dream Building Fund, which supports five to six local community projects every two years.

A central initiative is World Table Tennis Day, celebrated annually on 23 April since 2015 in honour of ITTF founder Ivor Montagu. The initiative grew from 158 celebrations in 70 countries in 2015 to a record 1,130 registrations across 140 countries and territories in 2025, with more than 400,000 participants and 88 national federations involved.

The Foundation’s Promoters Initiative supports local change-makers with mentoring, resources, networking, recognition, and up to €700 in funding. Applications for the 2027 programme close on 23 November 2026. The Foundation also promotes Tables4ALL, providing free construction manuals so communities can build their own tables using wood, recycled materials, concrete, or other locally available resources.

FITEQ: Teqball and Active Living

László Vajda, Secretary General of the International Teqball Federation (FITEQ), presented teqball as a community-first sport designed to contribute to sport for all and active, healthy living. He emphasised the experience of a beginner who may say, “I’m not very good at sport,” and argued that the first session should create a positive, achievable experience that encourages the person to return.

Teqball was developed in Hungary and combines football skills with play on a specially designed curved table. It can be played as singles or doubles; players have up to three touches before returning the ball, may not use their hands or arms, and official matches use sets to 12 points in a best-of-three format.

Vajda referenced WHO recommendations of 150–300 minutes of moderate aerobic activity per week for adults and 60 minutes per day for children and adolescents, presenting teqball as one possible contribution to these targets. He was careful to note that teqball is an option for active living, not a treatment or guarantee of better health.

FITEQ has established para-teqball rules and classification, including categories for athletes who use crutches and athletes with lower-limb prostheses. However, Vajda stressed that the official competition format does not yet accommodate every impairment; community sessions can use further individual adaptations, such as adjusted ball feeds, permitted touches, timing, table access, and clearance.

He also emphasised that access means more than owning a table: cost, transport, step-free routes, accessible toilets, suitable opening hours, clear information, and a genuine welcome are all essential. He distinguished an “open invitation” from an “organised welcome,” which actively helps a person arrive, participate, and return.

As a practical model, FITEQ proposed a 30-minute community session: welcome and individual-needs check, ball-control practice, cooperative rallies or short games, and a closing feedback conversation with details of the next session. Vajda cited Montenegro as a successful example, where every high school and secondary school, and most elementary schools, have teqball tables with regular activity.

Seminar Summary — Session 4

The final session of the European Week of Sport seminar series, organised by the European Sports for All Union (UESPT) and the International Sports for All Federation, concluded the series with presentations from four international federations: the International Bandy Federation (FIB), World Flying Disc Federation (WFDF), the International Draughts/Checkers Federation (FMJD), and the International Esports Federation (IESF). The session highlighted how federations can expand participation through simplified formats, digital learning, low-cost equipment, and innovative links between gaming and physical activity.

FIB: Short Bandy

Attila Adamfi, General Secretary of the International Bandy Federation (FIB), presented Short Bandy, a new discipline formally approved by the FIB Congress in January. It was developed as a bottom-up adaptation of traditional bandy for ice hockey rinks, addressing the limited availability of full-size bandy arenas: only around 10 countries have dedicated bandy arenas, while approximately 80 countries have ice hockey rinks.

Short Bandy requires teams of four players plus a goalkeeper, rather than 11 players, and uses no body checks, portable goals that can be deployed in two minutes, and lighter equipment. These features reduce costs, injury risk, and logistical barriers, making the discipline more suitable for youth, recreational players, and countries with existing ice hockey infrastructure.

FIB reported that India, Italy, and other new members have joined the federation because of Short Bandy, and the first international Short Bandy Cup, the Swiss Cup, was held in September with four nations and six teams. FIB has also discussed the format with the IOC as a potential fit for Olympic programming, while promoting venue-sharing and energy-efficient ice facilities to improve sustainability.

WFDF: Flying Disc

Robert “Nob” Rauch presented the World Flying Disc Federation (WFDF), founded in 1985, which now has 127 national associations and has been recognised by the IOC since 2013. He described flying disc as a highly accessible sport: a quality disc costs around €8–10, and the self-officiated “Spirit of the Game” culture develops communication, responsibility, and conflict-resolution skills.

A major initiative is the WFDF Academy, launched in mid-2025 on an open-source Moodle platform. It reached nearly 70,000 registered users across more than 140 countries, offering content ranging from beginner technique to safeguarding, anti-doping, and integrity.

WFDF also presented 38 sport-for-all projects implemented over the past two to three years across Eastern Europe, Southeast Asia, Latin America, Africa, and North America. Examples include programmes for more than 4,700 children in Burundi, girls’ programmes in India, support for displaced families in Iraq, prison-based conflict-management work in South Africa, and school programmes in Venezuela and Mexico.

In response to a question about introducing flying disc in Cameroon, Rauch offered to connect the interested participant with WFDF’s Continental Association to discuss a suitable development pathway.

FMJD: Draughts and Checkers

Carlo Bordini presented draughts/checkers as an exceptionally inclusive mind sport because it requires neither physical strength nor running speed, can be played on a board or online, and involves minimal equipment costs. Players range from children to people aged 97–98, and the game can be adapted for blind players while most other disability groups can participate without modification.

He highlighted the educational and cognitive benefits of draughts, including attention, memory, logical reasoning, planning, and understanding the consequences of decisions. He also noted that the game can support cross-cultural exchange, citing examples in Italy where people from different linguistic backgrounds play together.

The online format enables global participation without travel costs, making draughts particularly relevant for schools during winter or in locations without sports facilities. Bordini’s presentation was interrupted by a loss of mobile connection, and he had not prepared slides due to time constraints.

IESF: Esports and Physical Activity

Vlad Marinescu, President of the International Esports Federation (IESF), described esports as a major global movement with more than 3 billion gamers. IESF, founded in 2008, now includes 154 national federations, 96 of which are recognised, and has been a WADA signatory for more than 15 years.

The IESF World Championship brings together 176 national teams and features five game titles across console, PC, and mobile platforms. Marinescu noted that esports streams can reach 700,000 concurrent viewers, compared with 10,000–20,000 considered strong for many traditional sports, and that the core audience is aged 25–34.

IESF is developing initiatives to connect gaming communities with physical activity, including the Certified Gamer course, developed with Kazakhstan National University, covering fitness, nutrition, mental strength, social skills, coding, streaming, event management, and network administration. Its Move to Play programme proposes a five-step pathway from community engagement to physical activation, technical skill, play, and competition.

A proposed incentive asks users to complete a one-kilometre walk to access World Championship streams, creating a low-barrier entry point to physical movement. IESF has also introduced women-only divisions in Counter-Strike and Mobile Legends: Bang Bang to strengthen female participation.