The fourth meeting of partners in the project Gymnastics for Youth – GYM4U funded by the Erasmus +
program of the European Union, led and coordinated by Gymnastics Club Vukovar with implementing partners
Sokolsko društvo Vojvodina from Novi Sad, Gymnastics Sports Club Partizan Orce Nikolov from Skopje,
Powerlifting Club Adamas and the Public Institution for the Management of Sports Facilities of the City of
Vukovar “Sports Facilities Vukovar” from Vukovar, took place in Ohrid, Makedonija from 23.08.2022. till
27.08.2022. godine EU guidelines for physical activity recommend that the development of motor skills should
be emphasized at an early age. Young athletes have special needs in sports, and as they grow and develop,
they must perform exercises and elements in a safe way, so the general goal of the GYM4U project is to
protect young athletes aged 7 to 14 from health hazards and increase their safety by improving conditions for
training and competition.
The project is implemented in a two-year period from 01.01.2021. until 31.12.2022. year, and each meeting is
organized in a different partner country. During this meeting, a meeting of the Project Team and a meeting of
the Steering Committee, a workshop “How to improve training and competition conditions using the PGW
training model” and a visit to the National Gymnastics Camp were organized.
The meeting of the Project Team and the Steering Committee was an opportunity to exchange experiences in
the implementation of the project program, and to present the activities that the project partners have carried
out in the past 9 months. Each project partner presented the activities they carried out in working with children
aged 7 to 14 using elements of powerlifting, aqua-aerobics and swimming for the development of children’s
motor skills and stability. Furthermore, they discussed the impact of the PGW model on the protection of
gymnasts from danger and safety during training and competition, which includes certain elements of
powerlifting, aqua-aerobics and swimming that strengthen children, and the nutrition of athletes and children.
Future activities in the project were also agreed upon during the meetings.
The workshop “How to improve training and competition conditions using the PGW training model” was held,
where the participants presented topics related to the PGW model training methodology and the
complementarity of three selected sports with gymnastics, nutrition of young athletes, injury prevention,
occurrence and rehabilitation of injuries, both physical and psychological, stress and the role of professionals to
help with psychological development.
The representative of SOV Vukovar, Ivan Szabo, presented the methodology of swimming and the influence
and advantages of swimming as well as complementary exercises with gymnastics, while Snežana Bijelić
presented the methodology of aqua aqeobika and the correlation with gymnastics. The representative of PLK
Disclaimer: “The European Commission’s support for the production of this publication does not constitute an endorsement of the contents,
which reflect the views only of the authors, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the
information contained therein.”
Adamas Željko Đitko presented the basics of proper nutrition in order to improve the performance of athletes,
while Snežana Bijelić presented a topic related to nutrients – nutrients needed in the diet of athletes. Together,
they held a practical workshop related to the design of athletes’ menus. The representative of GK Vukovar,
Martina Stojšić, presented a topic related to the nutrition of child athletes aged 7 to 14 years. She also
presented a topic related to injury prevention through joint mobility in gymnastics. The representative of GK
Vukovar, Rebecca Nikolina Vignjević, presented a topic related to injury prevention, which was carried out at
GK Vukovar with child athletes and their parents: Thoughts and emotions in the service of injury prevention, as
well as a practical workshop. The representative of GK Vukovar, Dragana Bijelić, presented a topic related to
rehabilitation of injuries with an emphasis on urgent treatment of acute injuries of the extremities and
immobilization techniques of the same, along with a practical exercise of immobilizing acute injuries. The
representative of KGS Partizan Orce Nikolov Petar Stojanovski presented the topic related to sports gymnastics
and fear, the reasons for its occurrence and overcoming fear. The representative of the Vojvodina Sokol
Society, Miroslav Kovačev, presented a topic related to the place and role of psychologists in the training
process and preparation for the competition.
The last day of IV. Meeting the GYM4U project, the participants visited the National Gymnastics Camp where
workshops were held with demonstration exercises of powerlifting, gymnastics, aqua-aerobics and swimming
with the children who attended the camp. Some of the children participating in the camp were children from
KGS Partizan Orce Nikolov Skopje who are also participants in the GYM4U project, and some of the gymnasts
were members of KGS Partizan Bitola who joined their colleagues in these trainings.
Disclaimer:
“The European Commission’s support for the implementation of the project does not constitute an endorsement of the contents, which reflect the views only of the authors, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.”
Odgovori