New Miracle, an international project on women’s leadership in sport, continues. The first international workshop took place this week in Bratislava (Slovakia), with 26 participants from Lithuania, Latvia, Italy and Slovakia.
“The opportunity to get to know and interact with colleagues from abroad not only broadens our horizons, but also allows us to look at challenges from a different perspective,” said Agnė Vanagienė, Deputy Director of Olympic Sport of the National Olympic Committee of Lithuania (LNOC) and the project organiser.
The main topic of the international training is good governance. The keynote presentation was given by Danka Barteková, IOC Member, who introduced the practice of the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
Eva Rebmann, Acting Deputy Director of the EOC EU Office, moderated the practical workshop and a discussion on the cases of the project participants. Focus groups on relevance of competencies and skills in the field of sport management were led by Laura Capranica and Flavia Guidotti from the Foro Italico University of Rome.
Rob Holden, Training Delivery Manager at World Sailing, presented the opportunities and obstacles of working for an international sports federation.
“There is a shortage of female sports managers not only in Lithuania but also in many other countries. That’s why we started this project. We want to encourage women not only to work in sport, but also to seek high positions. During this project, they work with experienced lecturers, share their personal experience and communicate with their colleagues from abroad. We believe that this will make a strong contribution to their professional growth,” said Ms Vanagienė.
Agnė Vanagienė.
The New Miracle project is a unique LNOC initiative joined by four other European National Olympic Committees from Italy, Latvia, Estonia and Slovakia.
In preparation for this project, a free training programme and an exclusive mentoring platform for novice sports managers have been developed, where project participants have the opportunity to get advice from experienced colleagues and improve their collaboration skills.
In total, 100 participants from 5 countries are involved in the project. The first national training took place in January. The main topic was leadership. Theoretical material was combined with practical sessions. Participants had to perform various tasks, do teamwork and solve challenges they had devised. Homework was also given. The second international workshop will take place in Riga (Latvia) on 23–25 April.
The New Miracle project gives participants the opportunity to consult with experienced colleagues and strengthen their cooperation skills.
The application of the LNOC, the initiator of the project, for 2021 was one of the 315 that won European Union funding. A total of 1107 applications were submitted.
