Within the framework of the EU's Erasmus+ program for education, training, youth and sport, the Chair of Preventive Pediatrics of Prof. Dr. Renate Oberhoffer-Fritz has been granted two new projects.
The project "kidsTUMove goes Europe - cordially fit" aims to raise awareness of the importance of health-promoting physical activity for children with chronic diseases and post-traumatic stress disorders. In addition to TUM, four other institutions from Italy, Greece, Spain and Portugal are involved. The project runs until June 30, 2025, with Erasmus+ funding totaling 400,000 euros, TUM's share being 114,100 Euros.
The project leaders around Dr. Christina Sitzberger, Dr. Nicola Stöcker and Dominik Gaser, Research Associates at the Chair of Preventive Pediatrics, are drawing on existing experience and proven resources of the model project "kidsTUMove". The program was founded in 2007 at the Department of Sport and Health Sciences and has since enabled chronically ill children and adolescents to access sports and exercise. It also aims to promote the health, quality of life and self-confidence of the children concerned.
"'kidsTUMove goes Europe - cordially fit' is a multiplier concept of our existing project. In this respect, we are very pleased that kidsTUMove is now being implemented so globally for the first time," explains Dr. Sitzberger. "Based on the European approach, we now want to develop a manual for trainers and coaches who work with chronically ill children and children with post-traumatic stress disorder. This manual will then be tried out at each partner's site in the respective country to determine what content may still be missing." The second step will be to create a web presence including the manual as well as information about sports groups, camp dates as well as future activities, which will be translated into all partner languages.
The kickoff meeting with the participating partner institutions took place in Munich at the end of January. In addition to a guided tour of the new TUM Campus in the Olympic Park, the project responsibilities as well as the further roadmap were discussed in detail.
"With kidsTUMove, we have already been able to encourage children with chronic diseases to do more sports and exercise since 2007, thus enabling a better quality of life as well as more self-confidence," says Prof. Oberhoffer-Fritz. "Through the new project, children and adolescents in other European countries can now also benefit from our proven concept."
In addition, the Chair of Preventive Pediatrics, together with five other partners from four European countries, was successful with its Erasmus+ project application "Sport4E - Skills through sport for Employability and Entrepreneurship." The project, which is being led by a Portuguese institution, is being funded with a total of 250,000 Euros, of which TUM will receive 39,000 Euros. The project duration is also 30 months.
The goal of "Sport4E" is to determine which skills and abilities European athletes need to be successful in their working lives. "Approaches from sports will be used to acquire soft and hard skills for future entrepreneurship," says Miriam Gedik, Research Associate at the Chair of Preventive Pediatrics and project collaborator. "We want to find out what tools we can and must give top athletes to help them make the transition into the workforce."
For successful implementation, coaches and sports teachers as well as athletes are to be interviewed in order to subsequently build a consensus from all interviewed groups. In addition, a methodological guide for career development will be developed and a "Sport4E" learning film will be created.
"The EU's Erasmus+ program aims to advance people's personal development and increase their employment opportunities," said Prof. Oberhoffer-Fritz. "The Sport4E project follows on directly from this. Sport and, in particular, collaboration with stakeholders from the field of elite sport certainly act as success factors in this environment."
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Contact:
Prof. Dr. Renate Oberhoffer-Fritz
Dean Department of Sport and Health Sciences
Chair of Preventive Pediatrics
Georg-Brauchle-Ring 60/62
80992 München
phone: 089 289 24601
e-mail: dekanat.sg(at)tum.de
Dr. Christina Sitzberger
Chair of Preventive Pediatrics
Applied Sports Science Unit
Georg-Brauchle-Ring 60/62
80992 München
phone: 089 289 24900
e-mail: christina.sitzberger(at)tum.de
Miriam Gedik
Chair of Preventive Pediatrics
Georg-Brauchle-Ring 60/62
80992 München
phone: 089 289 24900
e-mail: miriam.gedik(at)tum.de
Text: Romy Schwaiger
Photos: Chair of Preventive Pediatrics/private