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Participants of the 1st HERA camp in white T-shirts in a sports hall in Ljubljana, drone shot; children's faces are blurred

Erasmus+ Sport · 2022 to 2024The HERA Project

Rugby as health-enhancing physical activity for children and young people

▶ Watch the film (2:20)

From July 2022 to June 2024, HARK Mladost from Zagreb and Rugby klub Ljubljana carried out an Erasmus+ Sport project for children and young people at risk of overweight. The clubs developed a programme and an action plan that a rugby club can follow to become a health-promoting club, and tested them at three international camps attended by a total of 180 participants.

Project No. 101048736 · ERASMUS-SPORT-2021-SSCP

The project film

Three camps, two clubs, 180 participants

2:20 · English versionMusic composed for this filmChildren's faces are blurred
About the project

A club that attracts and retains

The HERA project (Health-Enhancing Rugby Activity) addressed two questions: how to make a rugby club accessible and attractive to children who do not play any sport and are exposed to health risks associated with overweight, and how to retain young players who face the same risk.

The aim was to strengthen the capacity of clubs and coaches to work according to the health-enhancing physical activity (HEPA) approach. The methodological basis was the European Sports Club for Health (SCforH) framework, and the World Rugby Activate injury prevention programme was used to keep training with children safe.

ProgrammeErasmus+ Sport, Small-scale Partnerships
Call and project numberERASMUS-SPORT-2021-SSCP · 101048736
CoordinatorHARK Mladost, Zagreb, Croatia
PartnerRugby klub Ljubljana, Slovenia
Duration1 July 2022 to 30 June 2024 (24 months)
EU funding60,000 EUR as a lump sum (HARK Mladost 37,500 EUR, Rugby klub Ljubljana 22,500 EUR)
Target groupchildren and young people up to the age of 16, coaches and club staff
HERA project roll-up with the slogan Play rugby, be healthy in the sports hall of Bartol Kašić Primary School
Results

The project in numbers

3international camps, 2 in Slovenia and 1 in Croatia
180participants in total across the three camps
3educational workshops: two for club staff and coaches, the third for all camp participants
4partner project meetings
2documents developed: HERA Programme and HERA Action Plan
3languages of the Action Plan: English, Croatian, Slovenian
5,300copies of the local newspaper “Šentvid nad Ljubljano” carrying an article about the project (March 2023)
80%of camp participants asked for further information or joined follow-up activities

In a survey of camp participants, all of them said they would speak positively about the camp. All club staff said they would work together again and would recommend this cooperation to others.

The programme in practice

At HARK Mladost, the HERA programme was implemented during 2023 in three periods, with three rounds of physical fitness testing of 22 young players (March, June and December). It was delivered by a professional team of three coaches, a doctor, a physiotherapist and a strength and conditioning coach, and the club's coaches and staff completed the basic World Rugby Passport modules in first aid, strength and conditioning, and coaching.

Camps

Three weekends, two countries

Each camp took place over a three-day project weekend: alongside the two-day camp, a project meeting and a workshop were held. Children and young people up to the age of 16, coaches and volunteers from both clubs trained together, regardless of body weight or fitness level.

Drone shot of a training session in the sports hall in Ljubljana
The Zavod sv. Stanislava sports hall during the 1st camp Participants of the 1st camp on the hall floor, seen from the gallery
1st HERA camp

Ljubljana, sports hall

9 to 11 December 202260 participants

Because of the cold, the entire programme was held in the sports hall of Zavod sv. Stanislava (St Stanislaus Institution) in Ljubljana. Participants first went through the World Rugby Activate exercises together and were then divided into two groups according to biological age. The second day was set aside for rugby-related games: touch rugby, dodgeball and relay races with the ball.

At the first workshop, staff and coaches from both clubs analysed the HARK Mladost action plan and together drew up a plan for Rugby klub Ljubljana.

Warm-up on the Rugby klub Ljubljana pitch
The pitch in Ljubljana with a view of the hills Setting up the HERA project roll-up beside the pitch
2nd HERA camp

Ljubljana, pitch and Šmarna gora

16 to 18 June 2023

The second camp was held outdoors. After a joint morning training session on the Rugby klub Ljubljana pitch, participants hiked to Šmarna gora and back to learn about the importance of general physical activity. They spent the free afternoon cycling and at the swimming pool, and Sunday was set aside for rugby-related games.

The second workshop was devoted to applying the HERA programme in local clubs.

The third workshop in the sports hall of Bartol Kašić Primary School in Zagreb
Participants of the third workshop, seen from behind A rugby ball on the sports hall floor
3rd HERA camp

Zagreb, final camp

1 to 3 December 2023

HARK Mladost organised the final camp in Zagreb and hosted Rugby klub Ljubljana. Saturday's training took place on the HARK Mladost ground and by Lake Jarun, after which participants had lunch together at the club's premises. Because of the rain, the guests spent the free Saturday afternoon at an indoor play centre with trampolines and a go-kart track.

On Sunday, after the games, all participants, children and adults alike, took part in the third workshop in the sports hall of Bartol Kašić Primary School, where they learned in an interactive way about healthy eating, the importance of physical activity and inclusion through rugby.

Documents

Download and apply

PDF · 54 pages · EN, HR, SL · May 2024

HERA Action Plan

A plan for implementing the HERA programme in a club over an annual cycle. For each of the seven guidelines it sets out the steps, deadlines, responsible persons, required resources and a performance indicator, and the first guideline is worked out in line with SCforH principles. It is intended for amateur rugby clubs, but any other sports club that wants to make health-enhancing physical activity part of its regular work can use it as well.

Open PDF (1.6 MB)
PDF · 40 pages · EN · public version

HERA Programme

Seven guidelines for turning a rugby club into a club that supports a healthy lifestyle: applying SCforH principles in the club, staff education, player profile and health screening, physical fitness tests, training guidelines, mental health and the social dimension, with an example of implementation at HARK Mladost. The public version does not contain individual participants' measurement data.

Open PDF (1.7 MB)
Partners and experts

Who carried out the project

HARK Mladost logo
Coordinator

HARK Mladost, Zagreb

HARK Mladost (Croatian Academic Rugby Club “Mladost”) from Zagreb, founded in 1954.

Rugby klub Ljubljana logo
Partner

Rugby klub Ljubljana

A rugby club from Ljubljana, Slovenia (rugbyljubljana.si).

The methodology builds on the Sports Club for Health framework (www.scforh.info) and the World Rugby Activate programme. The expert reviewer of the HERA programme was Prof. Danijel Jurakić, PhD, of the Faculty of Kinesiology, University of Zagreb.

Management

From idea to closure

As coordinator, HARK Mladost led the project from idea to closure: it built the partnership, prepared the application, signed the Grant Agreement with the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA), managed implementation and submitted the final report.

Timeline from the application (June 2021) to the approval of the final report (September 2024), drawn to a monthly scale.

  1. 2021Preparation and application

    Concept developed in line with the HEPA approach and the SCforH framework, partnership formed, application submitted to the European Commission on 9 June 2021.

  2. 2022Contracting

    Grant Agreement signed on 30 June 2022.

  3. 07/2022 to 06/2024Implementation

    Four project meetings (an online kick-off meeting on 29 September 2022 and three meetings held alongside the camps), three camps and three workshops, development of the HERA programme and the action plan.

  4. 2024Closure

    Final report approved on 16 September 2024, all contracted funds paid out.

Partner project meeting beside the HERA roll-up

HARK Mladost project team

  • Neven Crnobrnja, MScproject manager, Legal Entity Appointed Representative (LEAR) of the coordinator and signatory of the Grant Agreement
  • Tihomir Jankovićsports director, training sessions and camps
  • Dominik Draženovićcontent of the programme and the action plan
  • Sanja Kozinaadministration, finance and logistics
  • Dario Richard Oxenhamcommunication and visibility

For Rugby klub Ljubljana, implementation was led by Damijan Volavšek.

How we worked

  • every activity was launched with an invitation stating the agenda, venue and persons responsible
  • after project meetings, the partners received the minutes
  • all documents were kept in a shared digital repository
  • communication with the European Commission was handled through the Funding & Tenders portal
  • EU visibility was ensured on all materials: 4 banners and 4 roll-ups were displayed at all camps, workshops and in-person meetings, and all published content carried the EU funding acknowledgement
Cooperation

The next project

In the final report, the partners planned to continue their cooperation after the end of the project: exchanging good practice, training coaches, evaluating and refining the HERA programme every year, presenting the programme in schools and advising other clubs that want to introduce it.

HARK Mladost brings to a new project its experience as a coordinator that has contracted, implemented and closed a European project, ready-to-use documents in three languages, and experience in organising international camps for children and young people. We are looking for partners for new European projects in the fields of sport, health and the inclusion of children and young people. If your club, school or organisation has a similar goal, please get in touch.

Contact

[email protected]

HARK Mladost, Ulica Nikole Tesle 10, 10000 Zagreb

Participants of the 1st HERA camp with raised arms, drone shot; children's faces are blurred