International master class in Belgium: experience from the center of Europe for TEAM-EU-UA project partners (22-23.10.2025 р., Aalst, Belgium)
On October 22-23, 2025, an international master class was held in Aalst (Belgium) as part of the “Development of Team Spirit for the Implementation and Incorporation of EU Values in Ukraine (TEAM-EU-UA)” project, co-financed by the European Union.
The event was held in a hybrid format and became an important stage for the exchange of experience between European and Ukrainian partners of the project.
Participants were welcomed by Gorica Bilak, Sports Director of the European School Sport Federation (ESSF), who shared the practices of organizing the European Week of Sport and examples of implementing European values through sport and education. Her speech was a real inspiration for partners from different regions of Europe and Ukraine.
Project coordinator Yaroslav Galan, head of the NGO “YOUTH. SCIENCE. SPORT. HEALTHY MOVEMENT OF UKRAINE,” emphasized the importance of integrating European experience into the Ukrainian education and sports system, developing team spirit, inclusion, and forming a new culture of cooperation.
All partners of the TEAM-EU-UA project joined the event, including representatives from Warsaw, Chernivtsi, Kyiv, and Sumy, who presented their own examples of working with children, teachers, and young people.
In Chernivtsi, there was an online broadcast from Chernivtsi Multidisciplinary Lyceum No. 4: under the guidance of Olena Moroz, candidate of sciences in physical education and sports, associate professor, and master of sports in artistic gymnastics, participants conducted exercises with EU and Ukrainian flags. She also demonstrated methods for organizing similar events for schoolchildren and presented a demonstration performance of artistic gymnastics.
From Kyiv, Lena Zernik, director of the Ukrainian Student Sports Federation, joined the event and gave the floor to Maksym Balyas. He spoke about the methodology for organizing a sports maze for orienteering, emphasizing that such activities foster teamwork, creativity, and leadership skills.
In Sumy, the first part of the master class took place at the Botanical Garden of the A. S. Makarenko Sumy State Pedagogical University. There, students took part in classes dedicated to the formation of ecological thinking through game methods. Associate Professor Svitlana Hvozdetska, Professor Yulia Bondarenko, and Associate Professor Zhanna Chernyakova demonstrated the methodology for conducting the game “Dolphins in a Trap.”
Anton Vlasenko, Deputy Director of the Institute of Physical Culture, also held a master class on park volleyball, which was attended by Elena Petrova, silver medalist in biathlon at the Nagano Olympics, and Vladislav Maslov, Honored Coach of Ukraine in pankration.
In the second part of the event, Professor Oleksandr Tomenko presented the university’s best practices for fostering environmental awareness in the educational process, including educational games for schoolchildren developed as part of the Erasmus+ TEAM-EU-UA project.
Oskar Rosa, representative of the Institute for the Development of Sport and Education (Poland), welcomed the participants and emphasized the importance of international cooperation in the development of youth, sport, and education.
In total, more than 40 representatives from different regions took part in the master class and received certificates from the European School Sport Federation.
Ukraine was represented in the offline part of the event in Aalst by: Anna Greba – Ukrainian Student Sports Federation; Anastasiіa Komezan – NGO “YOUTH. SCIENCE. SPORT. HEALTHY MOVEMENT OF UKRAINE”.
This event became a practical platform for exchanging experiences and demonstrating how cooperation with European partners helps to increase the potential of Ukrainian educational and sports institutions, strengthening the values of unity, respect, and development.
Prepared using materials from the project website TEAM-EU-UA