European Week of Winter Sport (EWWS)

The general object of the “European Week of Winter Sport” project is to encourage the participation in sport and physical activity (Specific Sport Priority - Encourage healthy lifestyle for all) while raising awareness about climate change and promote sustainability (Horizontal Priority) through the creation and the implementation of the European Week of Winter Sport.

The priority that the project addresses the most is "Encouraging healthy lifestyles for all," with a focus on promoting physical activity and sport as a tool for health. This is evident from the project's objectives, which include promoting physical activity in winter, making winter sports more accessible and inclusive, and raising awareness about climate change and sustainability through winter sports.

The scope of the project is to promote physical activity, winter sports and sustainable development, mostly through the campaign of the European Week of Winter Sport. The project started in January 2024. Until now, the main collective activities are conducting a cross-border research, related to the organisation of sustainable winter sport events and the drafting of a toolkit, a document useful for the events organisers.

Through the project, local leaders in different countries will be engaged and empowered to act as multipliers, spokespersons and ambassadors for the EWWS initiative. They will involve other people and organisations in the campaign and organise different kind of events during the pilot test of the EWWS in February 2025.

So far, two project partner meetings were held in 2024, the kick-off meeting in Madrid on January 26th and the second one in Luxemburg from 8-10 of July. 

Specific objectives and activities will be identification of needs, challenges and resources for organizing sustainable sports events in the field of winter sports; supporting sports associations and local authorities in the organization and promotion of events in the field of winter sports during the European Week of Winter Sports (#BeWinterActive week); and raising awareness of climate change and sustainability through the European Week of Winter Sport Week and sport in general.

The cooperation partnership in the field of sport within the Erasmus+ programme brings together 9 entities from 8 countries, with L'Orma from Italy as the coordinator, with partners Bulgarian Sports Development Association from Bulgaria, Sport for Education and Health - DES and Kilian Jornet Foundation from Spain, Ski club Rijeka from Croatia, NEST Berlin from Germany, International University of Health, Exercise and Sports - LUNEX from Luxembourg, European Platform for Sports and Innovation - EPSI from Belgium and EUSA Institute from Slovenia.

EWWS is Co-Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). Neither the European Union nor EACEA can be held responsible for them.

For more information about the project, please see http://wintersportweek.com