This month’s student column will focus on the introduction of the new members of the EUSA Student Commission. As the mandate of the EUSA Student Commission members finished in December 2018, the new members have been nominated by the EUSA Executive Committee.

The Chair of the Student Commission remained Anna Edes (HUN), while former member Moritz Belmann (GER) has also been reappointed. The current composition will serve their term until 2020.



“My name is Darragh Moran, I am from Dublin, Ireland and I am a final year undergraduate student at Maynooth University. I speak Irish, English and Spanish and I am currently studying Irish Language as part of my double honours degree. I mainly play rugby union but I also play Australian Football. I have represented my country at two European Championships for Australian Football and have played rugby at the highest amateur level here in Ireland. I served as the Vice President of my Student Union last year and I am now the current Vice-Chairperson of Student Sport Ireland, and plan to continue in my role until 2020. I have become involved in EUSA for the same reason I became involved in student politics, to promote the student voice and to ensure that students in higher education are facilitated in either their ambition in, or simply their enjoyment in sport. I cannot wait to begin working with what looks to be a strong Student Commission here at EUSA!”



“I’m Linus Loehlein, acting representative of Switzerland in EUSA‘s Student Commission and currently studying International Affairs in Eastern Switzerland and about to complete my bachelor. At a very early stage during my studies, I became involved in the sports programme of the University of St. Gallen. Directly after my first year I started teaching Bodypump group fitness classes. Soon I started developing my own barbell workouts in separate customized courses. Currently I am introducing Bodyattack, a highly energetic cardiovascular endurance workout from New Zealand, in the university‘s sports programme. Furthermore I co-founded the University‘s Alumni Alpine Club, which will bring alumni and students together in alpine sports. As a lecturer I will soon be preparing instructor trainees for their future role in university sports classes. Overall my goals are to make the university‘s sports offers more accessible to the general population, to create classes that can be visited by hundreds of students simultaneously and to promote exchange between alumni and undergraduates. Above all there is nothing more important to me than the bond university sports can create between those who frequent its numerous classes and I am absolutely convinced that the same should be preserved and expanded.”



“I am Xavier Vieira and I study Public Administration with minor in Political Science in the third year of degree at the University of Aveiro. My stay at the university is marked by the participation in several students' movements. I joined the board of the Students’ Union of the University of Aveiro as a member of the Educational Policy Sector and Vice-President, until became a President in the next years, having direct contact, with debates of national context such as social action and school dropout, quality and evaluation, internationalisation and university sports. As President, we made a proposal to organise the FADU finals at our university, and we won. It was a major event that has 2.000 athletes on competition with the duration of two weeks and I was the main organiser. In our university we have a project in informal sports that we called UA Cup and we have approximately 3.000 athletes and eleven sports that every student can compete. At the national level, was elected Representative of Higher Education Students' in the Coordination Council of the Ministry of Science, Technology and Higher Education. All this has allowed me to acquire a set of values, especially what regards strategic vision to recognise the importance that participation of students in sports as a regular practice for a healthy life in the higher education. In this way, to integrate this Students Commission represents an opportunity to contribute with more ideas to reinforce the role of European university sport.”



“I am Stefanie Mitterlehner, 21 years old and from Austria. I live in Vienna and I am about to finish my Bachelor’s degree in Secondary Teacher Education for Italian and Movement and Sports at the University of Vienna. After having spent my Erasmus semester in Catania, Italy, I discovered what it really means to be a European citizen and how much we as the younger generation are responsible for Europe’s future. I personally think there is no better way to build up an international network than with sports. I have been particularly interested in sports since I started my studies and I enjoy doing all kinds of sports like skiing, swimming and especially high jump, which is why I joined the Italian Athletics Federation during my semester abroad. That is also how I came in touch with different kinds of sport systems and associations. In addition, I was involved as a competitor but also as a volunteer in several competitions at the University Sports Centre of the University of Vienna. I am very glad to be a member in the EUSA Student Commission and thankful to have the opportunity to share my ideas and get involved in the European university sport for the next two years.”



“I am Kaisla Osara, 21 years old student from Helsinki, Finland. I study business in Metropolia Business School. I'm last year student and almost done my Bachelor’s degree. I specialized in leadership and interested in sports management. After this I am going to do Master’s degree also. Equestrian sports are my true passion. I have been riding my whole life and I'm Finnish national team dressage rider. I have represented Finland in international level, European championships with good success. Someday hopefully in world championships and Olympic Games. I have worked with our student sport federation in Finland and I was a Finnish delegate in FISU Forum 2018! It was amazing experience and I’m very happy to continue influencing with EUSA Student Commission!”



“My name is Chloé Calmettes. I’m from France and I live in the South of France, in Toulouse. Now I’m working on my PhD in Law and I’m teaching Law and Sport Management at the university. In addition, I just finished my work at the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg. It has been an incredible one month at the Court within the French Division. As a former top-level basketball player, I wanted to involve myself in other way in the field of sports. I have integrated the FFSU - the French Federation of University Sport - almost two years ago. Its Steering Committee composes of students and teachers, reflecting the principle of parity. Therefore, I had the opportunity to represent French Federation for the 29th Summer Universiade in Taipei in 2017. Moreover, with my regional association, I organised three international events in Barcelona and Venice. The goal was to reward students that are involved for their university sport team. Renewed relationships with Ca’Foscari Venice University permitted us to create a real sustainable link on an international level that was also presented by EUSA. Indeed, sport is inseparable from education because it allows exchange of knowledge. My principal motivation to integrate in EUSA is to gather students around a same passion: sport. Establish strong relations between the different European countries is key to promote and develop university sport. It is a tremendous honour to join the EUSA Student Commission and to be even more fully involved in promoting University sports.”



“I am Nina Plank, a 23-year-old from Slovenia. I have always been involved in sport. I trained volleyball and competed in European Universities Beach Volleyball Championship 2017 in Split, organised by EUSA. This was also my first introduction with EUSA. I graduated in Kinesiology, where I wrote my diploma on developing a strategy for Slovenian University Sports Association (SUSA). Now I am studying Sports Management, a master’s programme at the Faculty of Economics in Ljubljana. From 2012, I worked at the Students Club in Celje. At first, I mostly worked on organisation and coordination of projects, but later became the Head of the Committee for Sport, Culture and Tourism and a member of the management board. At the same time, I was a member of the main board committee and Head of the Students Committee at the Students Clubs Association and a member of Extracurricular Activities Committee at Slovenian Students Union. I also helped with coordiation and execution of sports events at the University Sports Association of Primorska. All of this got me to where I am now. I am the President of the Students Clubs Association Slovenia and a member of executive body in Slovenian Student Union. Furthermore, I am Head of PR and Marketing in the football club NK Rudar Velenje that plays in the first Slovenian football league. As a member of Students Commission, I will use my experiences and implement them on my work at EUSA. I believe this is a great opportunity and am glad to be part of EUSA’s story.”

EUSA Student Commission members will meet in Ljubljana, Slovenia January 25-27, 2019.

Are you a student with an opinion? We are looking for new contributors for our student column every month. Feel free to contact stc@eusa.eu to offer a piece or propose a topic.