Here we are! Here are the latest news from HALT4kids, a project co-Founded by European Union!
HALT4Kids project is focused in develop awareness about harassment and abuse in sports among child athletes (ages 5-12 years), coaches, athletes/former athletes, physical education students, physical education teachers and sport sector stakeholders, to support sports people to recognize and avoid harassment and abuse in child athletes by Designing and Creating digital tools and education material for child athletes such as:
-Digital storytelling (ST) to promote awareness and identification of harassment and abuse in sports in child athletes aged 5 to 8.
-Serious game (SG) using realistic scenarios in order to engage young athletes aged 9 to12 in critical situations which will help them to be aware towards harassment and abuse in sport.
-Mobile application (MA) for child athletes as a protective measure against harassment and abuse in sports.
-Developing Communities of Practice for awareness and knowledge about harassment and abuse in child athletes among coaches, athletes/former athletes, physical education students, physical education teachers and sport sector stakeholders.
The project is coordinated by the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, in collaboration with 5 different partners: European University of Cyprus, Unió de Federacions Esportives de Catalunya (Spain), ASVÖ Salzburg (Austria), Aps Asd Margherita Sport e Vita (Italy) and European Gymnastics (Switzerland).
Next, we present the main news from HALT4kids partners.
1. Unió de Federacions Esportives de Catalunya
“UFEC organizes the first seminar of the European project HALT4Kids”
Different representatives of the Catalan sports sector participated in the first seminar of HALT4Kids, Erasmus+ Sport project coordinated by the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki and in which the UFEC collaborates.
The HAKT4Kids project aims to increase awareness and knowledge about good practices to prevent bullying and child violence in sport. One of the results of the project will be a mobile application intended to facilitate the detection of cases and situations of child harassment in the sports field.
The seminar began with a great presentation by Montserrat Martín, teacher and researcher from the University of Vic. Montserrat presented the results of the state report “Child Abuse in Sport European Statistics” (CASES) where data were revealed to prompt reflection on the prevalence and characteristics of interpersonal violence against children in sport.
The seminar ended with a dynamic workshop between all the participants collect a series of reflections, proposals and ideas on the prevention of this social problem.
2.ASVÖ
“HALT4Kids Project led to a change of the ASVÖ Salzburg statutes”
During the first half year of the HALT4Kids project a lot of work was put into networking and the sensibilization of stakeholders in Austria for prevention of harassment and abuse in sports. As part of the needs analyses ASVÖ Salzburg organized a focus group discussion in which persons from sports politics, teachers, sports associations and sexual harassment experts took part. After a very fruitful conversation and with the ordinary general meeting coming up, the ASVÖ Salzburg presidency decided it was time to include a paragraph about his commitment for respect and against violence into the statutes of the sports association.
That might only seem like a small contribution, however the voluntarily working staff in sports clubs and federations normally have no standard or code of conduct they have to oblige to. With the change of the statutes and the consent of the board as well as all member organizations of the ASVÖ Salzburg, all voluntary personnel of the ASVÖ Salzburg and its member clubs can now be held responsible for acting accordingly, for instance, not to use any kind of physical or psychological, verbal or sexual violence, respect a child’s personal boundaries and individual feelings about closeness and distance and accept that an individual’s interest, health and wellbeing has priority over the association’s interests and performance targets.
Additionally, on April 9th, 2023 ASVÖ Salzburg introduced the new HALT4Kids project to future Physical education teachers in Salzburg. Cooperating with referents of the University of Salzburg Claudia Hünig held a workshop on the prevention of harassment and abuse in sports during a lecture on movement and mental health. Aside from the project presentation some simple rules for safety of children from harassment in sports lessons and their applicability in schools were discussed.
3. Aristotle University of Thessaloniki -AUTh
“Presentation of the HALTKids project at ICS 2023′
HALT4Kids project was presented by Stella Douka in the 4th International Conference of Sports Sciences (ICSS 2023), a leading international scientific research and technology conference focusing on Sport and Physical Education. It is organized by the School of Physical Education and Sports Sciences of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, the Thessaloniki University of Physical Education and Sports and the University of Serres. It is hosted for the fourth time in Thessaloniki, at the Centre for the Dissemination of Research Results (KEDEA) of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki from 2 to 4 March 2023.
“Organized the international conference ‘Safe sport: protection of children against sexual abuse and all forms of violence’
The Cyprus Sports Organization organized a high-profile international Conference titled “Safe Sport – Protection of Children from Sexual Abuse and all forms of Violence” on Friday 23 June 2023 at the “Tassos Papadopoulos-Eleutheria” Indoor Gymnasium at 9:30 am.
The Conference was organized in the context of the amendment of the Cyprus Sports Organization Law and the National Strategy of the State to prevent and eliminate intimidating behavior and acts of abuse or harassment against child athletes. It was addressed to all sports professionals, particularly those working with children.
Dr. Monica Shiakou was invited to participate as an expert during the closing round table discussion. The workings of HALT I and HALT4KIDS were presented as well as the digital technology developed and soon to be developed (HALT4KIDS) to help prevent and minimize the phenomenon of abuse and harassment in sports. The developments that have occurred since commencing the first HALT project were highlighted, followed by the presentation of the current state of things and where we are headed.
During the Conference, the Handbook on Sexual Abuse in Sport, which was developed by the Cyprus Sports Organization with the cooperation of Dr, Antonis Alexopoulos in order to provide detailed and comprehensive information to all those involved in identifying and managing incidents of sexual abuse and exploitation of children in sport, was presented.
The conference was covered by most of the Cyprus TV channels and its workings have been published in major online newspapers and reporting sites.
5. MSV
“Celebrated the Conference “Safe Sport – Protecting Children from Sexual Abuse and Violence”
APS ASD Margherita Sport e Vita held an esteemed international Conference titled “Safe Sport – Protecting Children from Sexual Abuse and Violence” on Friday, June 08th, 2023, at 9:30 am in the “Palacarassi” Indoor Gymnasium. The primary purpose of this Conference was aiming to prevent and eliminate intimidating behaviour and acts of abuse or harassment against young athletes. The event specifically targeted sports professionals, particularly those involved in working with children.
One of the notable participants in the closing round table discussion was Nadja Pavlovic, who attended as an expert. During the Conference, the advancements of HALT I and HALT4KIDS were presented, showcasing the digital technology currently developed and soon to be introduced to combat abuse and harassment in sports. The progress made since the inception of the first HALT project was emphasized, along with insights into the current state and future direction of the initiatives.
The Conference received significant media attention, with coverage by several Italian news channels, and subsequent publication in online newspapers and reporting sites. The idea of having organized this seminar within the Palacarrassi was born from the need to involve the same athletes of different sports disciplines to turn the spotlight on the phenomenon of abuse or harassment against young athletes.