Skip to content

INSPIRE

INCLUSION SPORTS
SUMMER CAMP
AND SHARE GOOD PRACTICES

INSPIRE

INCLUSION SPORTS
SUMMER CAMP AND SHARE GOOD PRACTICES

The INSPIRE project aims to trained minimum 18 swimming coaches from the partner countries how to work and include kids with intellectual disabilities in their work. The training will give practical knowledge and share good practices from adapted sports coaches with experience working with special kids. After the trainings the coaches and the kids will be involved in adapted swimming sports camp on the seaside of Bulgaria where the new competences and knowledge will be shared.

project № 101134097

The #project is co-funded by the European Union

TOOLKIT

PARTNERS

SPORTS CLUB BG AND SPORTS FOR ALL (BGSA)

Sports club BG & SPORTS FOR ALL, has been created to offer and help to all kids and adults with special needs, disabilities, or social limitations to participate in swimming sports activities together with non-disable. The club has been working for 2 years in Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria, …

more

KARGENC ENVIRONMENT SPORT CLUB

Kargenc Club has been already working on encouraging all aged people into physical activity and has the philosophy of ‘Sports for All’. They are organizing several sports activities in their local areas and include people from rural to urban areas in their activities.

more

KINITIKO ERGASTIRI

Kinitiko Ergastiri is a local non-profit sports association oriented to the field of adapted physical activity and recreation for the disabled. The mission of Kinitiko Ergastiri is to allow persons with disability to have the same chances and access to physical activity and social life, and …

more

TRAININGS

TRAINING 1

TURKEY, SAKARYA

24-25 MAY 2024

 On 24 and 25 May 2024 in Sakarya, Turkey the first training of swimming coaches of the Inspire Project #INSPIRE was held. The aim of the project is to train at least 18 swimming coaches from Bulgaria, Greece and Turkey how to work with children with intellectual disabilities in an aquatic environment. Also to encourage coaches to include children with intellectual disabilities in their practice.
 A total of 6 swimming coaches from Bulgaria, Turkey and Greece (two from each country) participated in the first training. Their teachers were adapted swimming coaches with wide experience from the project partner organisations.
 The training included 2 sessions with theoretical orientation and specifics in working with children with intellectual disabilities in an aquatic environment and two practical sessions at Anka swimming pool in Sakarya, Turkey.

_cuva
_cuva
_cuva
partners

NEWS

TRAINING 2

Sofia, Bulgaria

22-25 September 2024

The INSPIRE project, funded by the ERASMUS-SPORT-2023 program, successfully concluded its second Transnational Project Meeting (TPM) in Sofia, Bulgaria, from 22–25 September 2024.

The event brought together partners from Greece, Bulgaria, and Turkey to advance the project’s mission of promoting inclusive sports. This initiative focuses on training swimming coaches to work with children with intellectual disabilities and share best practices.The project is coordinated by BG AND SPORTS FOR ALL (Bulgaria) https://bgsportsforall.com, with partner organizations KARGENC CLUB (Turkey) https://kargenc.org/ and KINITIKO ERGASTIRI (Greece) https://www.kinitikoergastiri.gr/.

Key discussions and agenda items from the Sofia meeting included:

• Training Coaches: Sessions provided strategies for adapting swimming lessons for children with intellectual disabilities, including autism, Down syndrome, and other special educational needs, while addressing behavior management and communication challenges in water-based activities.
• Behavior in Water: Experts highlighted techniques to manage hypersensitivity to stimuli such as eye contact, touch, and sound, ensuring that children feel safe and comfortable during swimming lessons.
• International Sports Camp: The meeting also laid the groundwork for the upcoming international sports camping Nessebar, Bulgaria, in September 2025. This camp will involve 15 children with intellectual disabilities (five from each partner country) and serve as a platform to apply the project’s best practices.
• Best Practices and Problem Solving: Participants shared strategies to tackle communication challenges, repetitive behaviours, and crises during swimming sessions, while also discussing the importance of collaboration with parents in a supportive but non-intrusive manner.

The INSPIRE project is committed to ensuring that children of all abilities can enjoy and benefit from participation in sports. By training coaches and sharing experiences, the project aims to build inclusive communities across Europe.

For more information, please visit:
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61555925401548

Facebook

share

NEWS

TRAINING 3

Athens, Greece

24-27 April 2025

From April 24 to 27, 2025, the third training session of the INSPIRE project took place in Athens, Greece. The event, funded by the European Union, brought together swimming coaches from Bulgaria, Greece, and Türkiye to enhance their skills in working with children with intellectual disabilities in aquatic environments.

_cuva
_cuva
_cuva
_cuva
_cuva
_cuva
_cuva
_cuva
_cuva
_cuva
_cuva


During the three-day training, participants explored specific methodologies and practical approaches for adapting swimming sessions to meet the individual needs of children with intellectual disabilities. The program combined theoretical discussions with practical application, aiming to strengthen inclusive coaching practices across the participating countries.

The practical component of the training was held at the municipal swimming pool in the Ilioupoli district of Athens. There, coaches had the opportunity to apply the knowledge gained in a real-life aquatic setting, under the guidance of experienced professionals in adaptive physical activity.

The INSPIRE project is dedicated to promoting inclusive sports by training a minimum of 18 swimming coaches from partner countries and equipping them with tools to effectively support children with intellectual disabilities. The initiative will culminate in an adapted swimming camp on the Bulgarian Black Sea coast, where the newly acquired skills will be showcased and shared.

The project continues to foster cross-border cooperation, knowledge exchange, and long-term impact in the field of inclusive sports.

 

Facebook

share

CONTACTS

Ivelina Dimitrova

Phone: +359 886 95 35
E-mail: bgsportsforall@gmail.com
info@project-inspire.eu

www.bgsportsforall.com

Sofia, Bulgaria

SPORTS CLUB BG AND SPORTS FOR ALL (BGSA)

Sports club BG & SPORTS FOR ALL, has been created to offer and help to all kids and adults with special needs, disabilities, or social limitations to participate in swimming sports activities together with non-disable. The club has been working for 2 years in Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria, and it is situated in two swimming pools. They develop individual and group swimming lessons and successfully implement the inclusion of the kids with disabilities to swim in the same groups as non-disabled kids, to collaborate, and to learn from each other.

They prepare regular and special club competitions between the kids, separated into groups depending on their swimming levels and capabilities. They also develop summer swimming camps which are open to kids with disabilities and their families. They use this tool to create a teamwork field and friendships between the kids and their families. They successfully include the parents in the sport’s lessons and increase the limits of their capability and knowledge.

http://www.bgsportsforall.com/

KARGENC ENVIRONMENT SPORT CLUB

Kargenc Club has been already working on encouraging all aged people into physical activity and has the philosophy of ‘Sports for All’. They are organizing several sports activities in their local areas and include people from rural to urban areas in their activities.

Kargenc Club aims to create an environment where:

  • young people and society are physically active and their well-being
  • full active participation of society in their social life (specifically social inclusion of kids, young people, and women with fewer opportunities.)
  • to be at peace with nature and to encourage respect for the cycle of nature
  • a green World by encouraging society to raise awareness of climate change and eco-friendly lifestyles.

 

Their target group varies from 7 to 70 years old since they have strong relations with stakeholders such as the District Governor, National Education Directorate, District Director of Youth and Sport in the region; and they include these stakeholders in our activities to create a strong effect in our region. Thus, their target group varies as kids, young people, adults, families, seniors, and kids/young people with fewer opportunities in our region.

They are active in helping young people with fewer opportunities who don’t have the opportunity to do sports; organizing sport activities for people in rural areas, specifically for women in rural areas, and carrying out swimming activities for disabled kids.

https://kargenc.org/

Main HeaKINITIKO ERGASTIRIding Goes Here

Kinitiko Ergastiri is a local non-profit sports association oriented to the field of adapted physical activity and recreation for the disabled.

The mission of Kinitiko Ergastiri is to allow persons with disability to have the same chances and access to physical activity and social life, and develop potential by promoting innovation, education, work, and experience.

Kinitiko designs, implements, and monitors sports, recreation activities, and social inclusion actions for the disabled and their families. Their objectives are to promote sports and an active way of living for people with disabilities, to promote awareness of disability, to raise self-esteem for persons with disabilities to break society barriers, and to promote peace, non-violence, and human rights as a fundamental tool reach a world of equality and solidarity in which all human beings can access their fundamental rights. They have experience in the social inclusion field with two distinct programs:

The “Circle of Friends” where young people with disabilities can interact with each other in the frame of a club.

The “Family Days” where whole families can enjoy integrated sports activities along with their children.”

www.kinitikoergastiri.gr