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EDUCATING ATHLETES

Mr Gilles GASNIER, CENS Nantes, Education Director

1/ Director of the “Centre Educatif Nantais pour Sportifs”, you are working in the field of youth and sport. What are the main objectives of you’re association?

The Center is the structure most adapted to training of young athletes; it is a private institute, managed by a non profit organization. Created in 1986 its mission is to prepare intellectually and humanely the young athletes to allow them to accede to a vocational training with view to their social integration.
The structure is customised to each young student offering a tailor-made educational concept. For a class-group of 7 students or fewer, it offers education alongside their career as athletes as well as a professional orientation to realise the student’s ambitions.

2/ Knowing that the European Commission will launch a new policy to support sport , what should be considered as priority?



When the European Commission will have these new competences, two axes should be considered as priorities:

1. Improve the chances to access to sports even at the highest level to discover new skills among the students;

2. Enhance similar actions in Europe in order to conciliate sport and education, supporting a joint commitment of young people in both directions.



3/ Why did you participate to the training of Welcomeurope on the European Social Fund on 10 June 2009 in Paris?



This training is about all the financing opportunities offered by the European Social Fund (ESF) and about the ESF project management. My personal training objective is planning the implementation and management of a new project on social inclusion through sport and education. That the reason why I chose this training and decided to pursuit with the next Welcomeurope session “Building an European partnership”.



4/ Welcomeurope informed you on the ongoing financing chances within the “Preparatory actions in the field of sport and special annual events” coming from the 2009 call for projects. Besides this, you are now aware of your general funding opportunities. Which is the project you hope to ask for funding?



We are planning an innovative project for our institute as well as for every other body working on the sports sector in France or Europe. The project will consist on the social inclusion for young people living in sensitive urban areas; they would have the chance to receive a tailor-made training as the same time as a high-level sport activity and a professional integration. In order to finance this project, we’ll apply for public grants (town and department’s funds) and for the European Social Fund during a three or four year period.

Finally, we would like to repeat the experience in Europe implementing new partnerships, best practices exchanges and eventually a new version of the project addressed to sport and art activities.