Training & Workshops

1.        Online training Course for coaches and sports personnel

An online training course of 8 hours, i.e. 4 lessons of 2 hours each, is planned for coaches in order to share good practices for the implementation of effective and inclusive Open Days. The training includes a part related to organizational issues of the Open Day in the different clubs, and a specific training part related to youth coaching.

This will facilitate an increase in the technical skills of coaches and staff in the area of organising Triathlon training and competitions, and with a focus on how to involve young people in the sport. A standard operating procedure will be developed for the organization of effective Open Days, for subsequent sharing with participating national Triathlon Federations and clubs, and further dissemination.

2.        Knowledge-sharing workshops

4 knowledge-sharing workshops, concerning social issues relevant to the selected target groups: development of transversal skills through sport, inclusion of people with fewer access opportunities, equal opportunities, and strategies for youth involvement in sport. Specifically, insights will be provided on gender equality (taking as reference the European Charter of Women's Rights in Sport) and the new emerging issues in terms of psychophysical health and distress for young people following the outcomes of the pandemic.

European Open Day

A European Open Day will be organized at the same time in each of the 10 participating countries, with an expected participation of 4080 (40 new youths per club: in Italy 30 clubs will be involved while in the rest of the partner countries 8 clubs per country).

Triathlon clubs, previously selected through a meritocratic system by the national federations (8 for each federation, 30 for Italy), will be the protagonists of this moment of great sharing and media attention on triathlon. One of the expected effects of the Open Day is, of course, the hope of winning over new young people to the discipline and increasing the number of new entrants/people who practice in the 14-16 age group. In addition, as a result of the Open Days, clubs will be able to select "new talents", new young athletes to motivate and develop with the prospect of participation in the Camp and Race in Rome

Triathlon Camp

A week of introduction to the Triathlon in Rome will be organized, culminating with the international competition, and will continue with activities related to inclusion and the benefits of sport until the day after the competition. Each partner Federation will select according to meritocratic criteria 2 national licensed athletes (1 male and 1 female), 1 coach and 1 team manager (or President of the National Federation) and 2 "new talents" emerged from the Open Day (1 male and 1 female).

The Camp will provide technical training for the participating athletes and their coaches and renew the positive values of the sport for health, inclusion, equal opportunities and sociality. It will also be a key moment to cement the values of sport that Europe pursues, in an international, multilingual and multicultural context, where young people from different parts of Europe will be able to live side by side for a week, experiencing solid cooperation. During the week, 40 athletes will be accommodated in the top-level sporting context where they will be able to meet athletes who train in those facilities, including at Olympic level.

During the Triathlon Camp, representatives of the national federations will be involved in a panel discussion to share good practices, preliminary results achieved through the project activities, and to discuss agreements for dissemination.

In addition to the athletes participating directly, the Camp will be open to other young people (500 in total), including athletes, volunteers and supporters, who will be able to take part in some of the activities (e.g., the plogging competition) and experience some of the values that the sport of Triathlon teaches and exemplifies.

Triathlon Race

The Camp will culminate in a Triathlon race (eliminator format), which will involve 40 European athletes and will take place in a historical and sporting context of the highest level. The racecourse will take place in some of the most evocative places in Rome, and will include cycling along the Tiber, arriving at the Stadio dei Marmi and passing through the Olympic Stadium.

This will provide a valuable experience for the athletes and high inspirational value for the public, also contributing to the media appeal of the event, with the aim of increasing the visibility of Triathlon for young people at European level, and the awareness of the benefits of this sport for health and sociality.