The All-Ukrainian social and sports project Open Football Lessons, which is being implemented in Ukrainian cities with the support of UEFA and under the auspices of the UAF, has visited Drohobych these days.
The event was organised by the Lviv Football Association in conjunction with the Drohobych District Football Association.
Students from 11 educational institutions of the Drohobych community and IDP children gathered at the stadium of the Ivan Bobersky Children’s and Youth Sports School. In particular, the following schools joined the sporting event: Lyceum №1 named after I. Franko, Lyceum №2, Lyceum №3 named after V. Chornovil, Lyceum №4 named after L. Ukrainka, Gymnasium №10 named after E. Konovalets, Gymnasium №17, Lyceum №16 named after Y. Drohobych, Stebnytsia Lyceum №7, Derezhytske Gymnasium, Lishnyansky educational complex of I-III degrees, Medvezhansky gymnasium named after M. Bilas.
The sporting event began with a blessing from Father Rostislav Melekh and a general cheerful exercise led by representatives of the FitCurves fitness club Maria Puzur and Lyubov Luzhetska.
The project participants were greeted by the city’s leaders – Mayor Taras Kuchma and Deputy for Humanitarian and Social Relations Yuriy Kushlyk. Roman Hrytsai, Head of the Education Department, and teachers from the community’s educational institutions also came to support the young athletes.
After that, the schoolchildren started the most interesting part of the project – training and exercises. The children were trained in six thematic squares – using balls, hula hoops, cones, sticks, jump ropes and rope, the coaches organised various fun games and relay races for the young athletes, during which the children were able to master the elements of football technique.
The children were especially interested in the safety square, where they were taught the rules of safe behaviour in war conditions in an interesting, informative game form by employees of the State Emergency Service and the police. The children also learned from qualified specialists how to improve their health and immunity and eat right.
Volunteer trainers – students of the Faculty of Human Health and Natural Sciences of Drohobych State Pedagogical University – were also involved in the large-scale event.
In the end, the children received sports equipment, commemorative medals and T-shirts from the hands of Stepan Ponaida, curator of the Open Football Lessons in Lviv region, executive director of the Lviv Football Association, Andriy Smolsky, his deputy, Taras Kuchma, mayor of Drohobych, Yuriy Kushlyk, his deputy, Stepan Luzhetsky, head of the Drohobych District Football Association, and others.
We would like to add that the goal of the UAF and regional football associations’ Open Football Lessons project, supported by UEFA, is to:
– psychosocial support for children of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, children of IDPs, and children affected by war;
– uniting and friendship of IDP children with local children, social integration;
– Creating an inclusive environment and knowledge of the rules of safety in times of war;
– promoting a healthy lifestyle;
– activation of local communities through cross-sectoral networks (teachers, trainers, psychologists, security specialists, parents, youth leaders, local authorities, philanthropists, etc.)